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We’ve all been there – splitting a bill at dinner, covering a mate’s coffee, or sending a quick transfer for concert tickets. It’s part of modern social life. As money becomes increasingly digital and instantaneous, we no longer need to worry about doing maths in our heads or fussing about changing notes and coins. Now, we’ve got an app for that. Yet the way we exchange money is changing more than just our bank balances. It’s reshaping trust, communication, and even the dynamics of friendship. We often don’t think about it, but money does have an emotional weight. We experience what psychologists call the pain of payment, a negative emotional response to parting with money. It’s not just large amounts of money that feel uncomfortable or stressful – paying always carries some negative feeling. So, the next time it comes to splitting the bill, what’s the best way to approach it? Just because we can ask for money with an app doesn’t mean it’s good for our friendships – sometimes there are better ways to go about it. Money is the last tabooMoney is also one of those slightly taboo subjects, like religion or politics. When money comes up, we often prefer to change the subject, even with our partners. While “I’ll get you next time” might seem harmless, new payment technologies like PayID, Tap and Go, and instant transfers mean there’s less excuse for delay, and more potential for tension when people don’t pay up. A quick transfer request can feel efficient and convenient to one person, but uncomfortable and impersonal to another. When we ask for payment, we alter the social dynamic. A whole mix of psychological reactions and insecurities comes into play. These reactions can also damage the image we want to project to others. If we see ourselves as generous and caring, we might not be comfortable asking for payment for that coffee. Casual IOUs between friends often exist in a grey area – too small to make a fuss about, but significant enough to stick in our minds. When we don’t mind shoutingTaking turns to pay when going out to dinner or coffee is more likely to make us happier, as we don’t mind paying for those closest to us. Spending money on experiences with others actually increases our happiness, making us feel good to give them a little treat or gift. However, for someone we’re not close with, not splitting the bill can cause issues. Reciprocity, the expectation of getting something in return, can be encoded as a type of debt. Being paid for, then having a social debt, can feel unpleasant. On the flip side, some people will feel they have been unfairly taken advantage of when there isn’t reciprocity.  In one survey, seven out of ten people said they had opted out of a social event because it was too expensive. Negley Stockman/UnsplashThe fear of judgement can sometimes stop people being honest about financial struggles, even with a close friend. A recent survey revealed that one-third of people lied about being in a better financial situation than they really were to protect their social status. The same survey found this can impact relationships, with one-third of people admitting they had ended a relationship over money. Moreover, nearly seven in ten people said they had opted out of a social gathering because they were concerned it was too expensive. Of those, four in ten did not tell the real reason why. There can be a social costThe social etiquette around money has struggled to keep pace with technology. It can seem quite abrupt to message a close friend via an app like Beem (the Australian equivalent of Venmo) or even text to ask to be paid back. PayID has allowed us to send money to registered mobile numbers since 2018, doing away with the barriers of swapping BSB and account numbers. Although it’s quicker and easier than ever to transfer money, it’s the social barrier, not the admin barrier, that is really holding us back. How to approach the billUltimately, how we manage these exchanges, whether by politely reminding a friend or quietly letting it go, can reveal a lot about our social comfort zones. The closer the friendship, the more likely we are to ask in person, or just let it go. It can help to briefly mention money upfront, for instance, “Do you mind if we split this?”. This is socially easier than a discussion after someone has paid or as you both go to pay. It feels natural to pay half the bill at a restaurant, but can feel uncomfortable to either hand over cash later or transfer money to a friend. If we think of these exchanges as an investment, rather than a debt, we feel better about them. So, the next time you’re anxious about asking to be paid back, think of it as an investment in a friendship or connection. That’s more likely to help you enjoy the experience and your friendship too. Rhys Ashby, Lecturer in Marketing, Swinburne University of Technology This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article. |
Sparkle and Planhotel Accelerate the Digital Transformation of the Group’s Resorts (2026-01-06T13:50:00+05:30)
 Posted by Harry Baldock : Sparkle, the first international service provider in Italy and among the top global operators, and Planhotel Hospitality Group, an international company managing a network of luxury hotels in Tanzania, Kenya, the Maldives, Switzerland and Italy, announce a project to accelerate the digital transformation of the Group’s properties through faster and more secure connectivity. Founded in Lugano, where it is headquartered, Planhotel Hospitality Group has been a key player in the tourism industry for over twenty years, with a portfolio of luxury resorts and hotels across the Indian Ocean region. The Group is internationally recognised for its ability to combine local traditions with Swiss style and service excellence. Thanks to Sparkle’s Software-Defined Wide Area Network (SD-WAN) and Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) solutions, Planhotel aims to optimise its network architecture, improving the quality and reliability of Internet connections and enabling employees to securely access the company’s information systems. The SD-WAN solution intelligently balances and prioritizes traffic across multiple Internet connections – including satellite links – using advanced routing techniques to enhance service quality and continuity. The integration with SASE architecture further optimises and strengthens security, protecting access to corporate resources. In recent months, Sparkle has completed implementation in two resorts in Tanzania, resulting in a significant improvement in performance and operational continuity, particularly for applications such as videoconferencing and booking systems. Following these positive results, Planhotel intends to extend the project to a third hotel opening soon, with plans to connect additional properties in the future. With this agreement, Sparkle confirms its role as a key partner in the digital transformation of international companies, thanks to a portfolio ranging from connectivity to advanced solutions such as Cloud Connect, SD-WAN, SASE and IoT Global, as well as post-quantum security services designed to protect the most sensitive data. “We are proud to support Planhotel in its digital transformation journey,” said Annalisa Bonatti, Vice President Enterprise at Sparkle. “With our SD-WAN and SASE solutions, we enable secure, high-performing and scalable connectivity, a key element for companies operating in international and distributed environments such as hospitality.” “For us, technological innovation is an integral part of service excellence,” said Marco Rosso, Chief Digital & Business Automation Officer at Planhotel Hospitality Group. “A more powerful and secure network allows us to optimise daily operations and offer our guests an even smoother and more reliable experience, in line with the Group’s quality standards.” About Sparkle Sparkle is TIM Group’s global operator, first international service provider in Italy and among the top worldwide, offering a full range of infrastructure and global connectivity services – capacity, IP, SD-WAN, colocation, IoT connectivity, roaming and voice – to national and international Carriers, OTTs, ISPs, Media/Content Providers, and multinational enterprises. As a leading player in the submarine cable industry, Sparkle owns and manages a network of more than 600,000 km of fiber stretching across Europe, Africa, the Middle East, the Americas, and Asia. Sparkle’s sales team has a global presence, with representatives in 32 countries. Find out more about Sparkle following its X and LinkedIn profiles or visiting the website tisparkle.com Media Contacts: X: @TISparkle |
Viewpoint: Mindset shift for leadership in era of Final Investment Decisions (2026-01-05T13:58:00+05:30)
 Mohamed Al Hammadi and Sama Bilbao y León, pictured here at the 50th World Nuclear Symposium, held in London in September (Image: World Nuclear Association)World Nuclear Association Chairman Mohamed Al Hammadi, and Director General Sama Bilbao y León share their views on leadership in the global nuclear sector with Callum Thomas, Chair of the association's Workforce and Talent Development Working Group. In 2050, we will look back on 2025 as a pivotal time. The question is not whether this period was a turning point, but how boldly we chose the right decisions - on investment, on people and on partnerships - to deliver the nuclear capacity the world needs. The purpose of leadership today is to make sure that when future generations look back, they see this decade as the moment we accelerated. According to the Interbational Energy Agency (IEA), more than 67 million people now work in the energy sector globally. Clean energy has, for the first time, become the majority employer, with around 35 million roles across renewables, nuclear, grids and efficiency. As 33 nations move to triple nuclear energy the decisions leaders take now will shape not only how much clean electricity is built, but how many high-skill, long-term careers are created in every region. We are all familiar with the Final Investment Decision (FID), a key milestone that often makes headlines when mega-projects secure funding to proceed. Behind every FID are leaders who have inspired belief and action in others to achieve their shared goal. That investment, however, is not only financial. According to a recent NICE Clean Energy Ministerial report, each gigawatt of nuclear capacity typically creates around 4,000–5,000 jobs (direct, indirect and induced), underlining how decisions taken today will shape livelihoods and communities for decades to come. In other words, every FID in nuclear today is also a decision about the workforce that will carry our plants safely through to 2050 and beyond. A leader can be anyone who creates a vision, inspires others to believe in that vision, and then goes on to make it a reality. This means that anyone, in any role, at any level of an organisation, can be a leader. The executives who will lead our sector in 10 or 20 years are almost certainly displaying their leadership skills on a smaller scale today. Al Hammadi observes how effective some of the younger generation of leaders are in "innovating and thinking outside of tradition" while also "capitalising on the wealth of knowledge and experience" that already exists. For him, one of the most important tasks of senior leaders is to ensure that younger professionals are present at key events and embedded in major projects, so they can build on the experiences of those who have built and operated plants over many decades. Bilbao y León agrees - leadership is not about "being in charge" it is about "being responsible for those in your charge, empowering and enabling them". The next 20 years promise to be the most transformative in the sector's history. Electricity demand is rising sharply with electrification, digitalisation and AI, and clean energy already employs more people than fossil fuels globally, according to the IEA. We now need visionary leaders who are ready to lead decisively, continuing the acceleration already under way. Turning plans into delivery at record pace is critical if we are to seize this moment of growth. This is a mindset shift from "What are we going to do?" to "How are we going to make this happen, now?", in how we plan for skills, training and long-term careers. Al Hammadi sees a particular opportunity - and responsibility - in how the sector engages its youth. Globally, around a third of the world's population is under 20, and in many emerging economies the proportion is even higher. For nuclear, that means the engineers, operators and regulators who will be running the fleet in 2050 are in schools, universities and early-career roles today. He argues that every major nuclear energy gathering should ensure young nuclear professionals are engaged, so that they may carry that knowledge back into their organisations. The collaborative nature of the nuclear sector is a great asset, but knowledge sharing does not happen automatically; it must be led, structured and valued. There are leaders at all levels within the sector who have truly led by example and inspired others to collectively make their vision a reality. For Bilbao y León, the combined effect of thousands of such leaders - project managers, shift supervisors, reactor operators, site engineers, radiation protection specialists, regulators and educators - will determine whether the sector can deliver on the targets now being set. Clean energy is already one of the fastest-growing sources of employment in the global economy, and nuclear has a distinctive contribution to make: long-term, highly skilled jobs that anchor local communities while providing reliable, low-carbon power for industry, cities and digital infrastructure. By 2050, those looking back at this period will ask whether we matched our ambitions for clean energy with unleashing ambition on people: whether we invested early enough in skills, created clear pathways for young professionals, and used international platforms to share experiences and knowledge as effectively as we shared technology.The need is there, the technology is there, and the funding is increasingly available. Strong leadership - in governments, utilities, regulators, universities and companies of every size - will ensure that we can say, with conviction in 2050 that we took the right decisions in 2025. Viewpoint: Mindset shift for leadership in era of Final Investment Decisions
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No fiber, no AI: Why advanced optical networks are critical for digital transformation (2026-01-04T13:51:00+05:30)
 Posted by Gagan Kaur, Partner Article: The rapid adoption of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and cloud services, coupled with the new emerging high-capacity use cases, such as ultra-high-definition video streaming, telemedicine, Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality Gaming, are placing unprecedented demands on networks. The recent Huawei Optical Summit, themed “No Fiber, No AI: All Optical Networks Power AI for All Industries,” highlighted the growing relevance of high-capacity optical networks for different industry verticals to address the growing capacity and performance requirements. The summit shed light on global advancements in optical networks and their central role in driving digital transformation across various industries.  Marcus Brunner, Vice-Chair of ETSI ISG F5G “Digitalization, cloudification and AI-fication of applications are the key drivers of F5G Advanced (F5G-A) standards. Key features of F5G-A include isolation and separation of traffic, fibre sensing, AI-based optimization of the networks and AI-based data center networking, which enable a high-speed, ultra-reliable network and accurate sensing,” said Marcus Brunner, Vice-Chair of ETSI ISG F5G. The use of F5G-A is crucial to address the growing AI workloads, which will also help in bringing down the energy consumption. He also highlighted several emerging industrial use cases of F5G-A, such as intelligent power grid, urban rail, robotics as a service, smart sensor cloud for AI in industrial manufacturing, Wi-Fi 7 coordination for large campus networks and smart hospitals, among others.  Kim Jin, Vice President of Huawei Optical Business Product Line “Optical networks are now moving beyond the data center interconnect, extending into industrial sites and campuses. By enhancing and empowering computing with fiber, these advanced networks are vital to making the benefits of AI accessible and inclusive for different industries,” said Kim Jin, Vice President of Huawei Optical Business Product Line. He mentioned that over 2,000 enterprises across the globe have deployed AI applications based on all-optical networks this year, making it imperative to use all-optical networks for the rising use of AI applications. Huawei also released ten global all-optical network showcases, covering the government sector as well as industries such as electric power, transportation, education, healthcare, manufacturing, ISP, and hospitality. Spotlight on finance sector: Release of Whitepaper The Summit saw the release of a White Paper on Innovative Applications of Financial Optical Network Devices, by Huawei and Beijing National Institute of Financial Standardization. “Optical networks are gaining prominence in the financial industry as they are crucial to address three key challenges: a sharp increase in network load, growing security and compliance pressure and limitations of the traditional network architecture,” mentioned Han Zhuwu, director of Beijing National Institute of Financial Standardization. Advanced optical networks are designed to provide extremely high capacity, ultra-low latency and unprecedented reliability. This ensures seamless data transfer between headquarters and branch offices, ensuring service continuity. In addition, optical networks can also be integrated into security systems to improve the security and intelligence capability of financial infrastructure. Apart from the finance industry, the Summit also highlighted how other industries, including utility, transportation and medicine, are benefiting from high-performing optical networks. For instance, the utility distribution companies are under pressure to ensure more efficient business operations to reduce losses and provide greater transparent information systems for stakeholders and consumers. “Fine Grain Optic Transportation Network or fgOTN is emerging as a solution of choice for utility providers as it integrates with the existing services and provides extreme reliability as well as bandwidth for AI-powered services,” said Marcio Szechtman, Past Technical Council Chair of CIGRE. New-age Optical networks are also extremely relevant for medicine and smart cities. The growing usage as well as the increasing number of connected devices, is placing new demands on the networks. “Huawei’s F5G-A FTTO campus solution has transformed our Pudong campus by enabling us to provide a smart teaching solution to our students. On the other hand, it is helping us to foster and accelerate research and innovation in our campus,” said Lu Qin, Director of the Network Information Center at Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine. Huawei’s FTTO solution is designed to meet the requirements of local AI applications, Internet of Things (IoT) and ultra-HD video services. Deployed in over 10,000 campuses in more than 60 countries, FTTO is helping organizations build green, simple but smart campus networks. In Conclusion The Huawei Optical Summit underscored a central message that all-optical networks are no longer just about faster connectivity, but they are the foundation for AI-driven industries. From finance and utilities to healthcare, education and smart cities, optical networks are emerging as a critical enabler of next-generation digital services. As AI workload grows, industries that invest in advanced optical infrastructure will be better positioned to lead in the digital economy of the future. Without the foundation of robust all-optical networks, the promise of AI and digital transformation cannot be fully realized. No fiber, no AI: Why advanced optical networks are critical for digital transformation | Total Telecom
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'From classrooms to climate labs': 15,000 Kerala students building weather models (2026-01-01T13:08:00+05:30)
 Thiruvananthapuram (IANS): Nearly 15,000 students across Kerala are gaining hands-on exposure to modern weather science and forecasting techniques as the Little KITEs Sub-District Camps got underway across the state. A total of 14,804 students, selected from more than 2.08 lakh members spread across 2,248 Little KITEs units, are participating in the two-day camps being held at 225 centres. The students were shortlisted following preliminary school-level camps and are now receiving intensive training in programming, electronics, and digital content creation. The camps focus on enabling students to develop functional prototypes of weather monitoring instruments and understand the scientific principles behind the operation of professional weather forecasting centres. Using robotic kits earlier supplied to schools by the Kerala Infrastructure and Technology for Education (KITE), participants are designing systems that analyse inputs such as temperature, air pressure, wind speed, and humidity to predict weather conditions. As part of the programming sessions, students are building working models of essential weather station equipment, including temperature gauges using LDR sensor modules, servo motors, and Arduino components. They are also constructing digital anemometers to measure wind speed and wind vanes to determine wind direction, translating classroom concepts into real-world applications. Little KITEs, an initiative of KITE, the technology arm of the Kerala General Education Department, is recognised as India’s largest Student ICT Network, with a membership exceeding two lakh. The programme aims to cultivate innovation and technical excellence among students in public schools, equipping them with skills in Artificial Intelligence, Robotics, Internet of Things (IoT), and Animation, and encouraging them to become creators rather than mere users of technology. In the animation segment of the camp, students are producing digital content using OpenToonz, a free and open-source 2D animation software. They are being trained in advanced techniques such as rotate animation, in-betweening, lip-syncing, tweening and visual effects, while also creating 3D models using Blender.KITE Chief Executive Officer, K. Anvar Sadath, said that advanced robotic kits capable of building sophisticated systems—from mobile robots to smart weather stations—will be introduced in all schools from January 2026. 'From classrooms to climate labs': 15,000 Kerala students building weather models | MorungExpress | morungexpress.com
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With seemingly endless data storage at our fingertips, ‘digital hoarding’ could be an increasing problem (2025-12-24T12:46:00+05:30)
Darshana Sedera, Southern Cross University and Sachithra Lokuge, University of Southern QueenslandAs data storage has become more accessible than ever, the amount of digital “stuff” we all have stashed away is on the rise, too – for many of us, it’s becoming more unwieldy by the day. In a recent paper published in the journal Information & Management, we have investigated a rising phenomenon called “digital hoarding” – the need to acquire and hold onto digital content without an intended purpose. The way we interact with digital content through easily available smartphones, social media and messaging apps only exacerbates the behaviour. Social media platforms especially encourage us to hoard, as our emotions get entangled with the digital contents we share with others, such as photos with lots of shares or likes. If it can take up to 25 or more selfies before seeing a “winner”, the sheer volume of content creation raises an important question: how do we plan to manage this morass of data? Taking clutter into the digital eraHoarding is defined as a persistent difficulty in discarding one’s posessions, and can be either a disorder on its own, or a symptom of another mental health issue such as obsessive-compulsive disorder. A person with hoarding disorder experiences distress at the thought of getting rid of the items. They end up with an excessive accumulation of stuff in their home, regardless of actual value. We propose that digital hoarding happens when an individual constantly acquires digital content, feels difficulty in discarding it, and accumulates digital content without an intended purpose. Digital hoarding can quickly spiral out of control, too – perhaps even more quickly than in the physical world, due to several reasons. First, the digital hoarder is less likely to notice the space limitations in the digital world. While the boundaries of a physical space are clear, such boundaries are less prominent in digital spaces. Second, hoarding of physical objects happens in fixed boundaries, while digital spaces are “expandable” – you can get additional digital storage with minimum effort at very little or zero cost. Third, to hoard physical items, a person needs to expend some effort, such as purchasing them. By contrast, most digital contents are either self-created, free, or available on a subscription basis. Fourth, compared with physical stuff, digital contents can be multiplied (for example, by making copies) with very minimal effort. Overall, having various formats of digital content, an endless capacity to expand storage, increasing emotional attachment, and the lack of a sophisticated retrieval system may all make an individual nervous to delete this digital content – showing the potential signs of digital hoarding. We define digital hoarding based on these three criteria: constant acquisition of digital contents, discarding difficulty, and a propensity for digital content clutter. Constant acquisition refers to the constant gathering of digital content, without much consideration of its value, purpose or utility. With most communications taking place electronically, we tend to keep any and all digital content without discrimination – just in case! This includes emails, images, videos, bills and receipts. In our research sample, some people had gathered more than 40 terabytes (TB) of digital content over time. Acquisition refers not just to photos you have in storage devices, for instance, but also ones uploaded to social media. Difficulty of discarding digital content is the second characteristic of digital hoarding. Think about the last time you meticulously deleted old emails, for example. Theoretically, an individual with compulsive hoarding disorder tends to place high value on the contents they have, and as a result, they feel great difficulty discarding them. Clutter propensity is the third characteristic of digital hoarding. It refers to how abundant digital contents, often unrelated, are stored in a disordered fashion. As most digital contents can be stored in any digital device, individuals tend to save such content without much organisation and think they can sort it out later. This often leads to a feeling of being disorganised and cluttered in digital spaces. What can you do to curb digital hoarding?In our survey of 846 respondents representing the general population, we found that digital hoarding can lead to higher levels of anxiety. Statistically, 37% of one’s total level of anxiety, measured using an established depression, anxiety, and stress scale, was explained by digital hoarding. Our research also showed females are 27% more likely to feel the negative impacts of digital hoarding, compared with their male counterparts. Not surprisingly, the number of data storage devices someone owned worsened the impact of digital hoarding. For example, if someone owns multiple hard drives or cloud storage, digital hoarding impacts can increase. In the modern world, it is inevitable that digital content plays an important role in our lives. Therefore, the potential of serious mental health impacts from digital hoarding is a real possibility. If you think you’re holding onto too much digital content, here are some tips:
However, if you find these issues particularly difficult or confronting, consider speaking to your doctor or a mental health specialist. Darshana Sedera, Associate Dean (Research), Southern Cross University and Sachithra Lokuge, Lecturer, Information Systems, University of Southern Queensland This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article. |
From concrete to community: How synthetic data can make urban digital twins more humane (2025-12-23T11:43:00+05:30)
Wei Zhai, University of Texas at ArlingtonWhen city leaders talk about making a town “smart,” they’re usually talking about urban digital twins. These are essentially high-tech, 3D computer models of cities. They are filled with data about buildings, roads and utilities. Built using precision tools like cameras and LiDAR – light detection and ranging – scanners, these twins are great at showing what a city looks like physically. But in their rush to map the concrete, researchers, software developers and city planners have missed the most dynamic part of urban life: people. People move, live and interact inside those buildings and on those streets. This omission creates a serious problem. While an urban digital twin may perfectly replicate the buildings and infrastructure, it often ignores how people use the parks, walk on the sidewalks, or find their way to the bus. This is an incomplete picture; it cannot truly help solve complex urban challenges or guide fair development. To overcome this problem, digital twins will need to widen their focus beyond physical objects and incorporate realistic human behaviors. Though there is ample data about a city’s inhabitants, using it poses a significant privacy risk. I’m a public affairs and planning scholar. My colleagues and I believe the solution to producing more complete urban digital twins is to use synthetic data that closely approximates real people’s data.“ The privacy barrierTo build a humane, inclusive digital twin, it’s critical to include detailed data on how people behave. And the model should represent the diversity of a city’s population, including families with young children, disabled residents and retirees. Unfortunately, relying solely on real-world data is impractical and ethically challenging. The primary obstacles are significant, starting with strict privacy laws. Rules such as the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation, or GDPR, often prevent researchers and others from widely sharing sensitive personal information. This wall of privacy stops researchers from easily comparing results and limits our ability to learn from past studies. Furthermore, real-world data is often unfair. Data collection tends to be uneven, missing large groups of people. Training a computer model using data where low-income neighborhoods have sparse sensor coverage means the model will simply repeat and even magnify that original unfairness. To compensate for this, researchers can use the statistical technique of weighting the data in the models to make up for the underrepresentation. Synthetic data offers a practical solution. It is artificial information generated by computers that mimics the statistical patterns of real-world data. This protects privacy while filling critical data gaps. Synthetic data: Tool for fairer citiesAdding synthetic human dynamics fundamentally changes digital twins. It shifts them from static models of infrastructure to dynamic simulations that show how people live in the city. By generating synthetic patterns of walking, bus riding and public space use, planners can include a wider, more inclusive range of human actions in the models. For example, Bogotá, Colombia, is using a digital twin to model its TransMilenio bus rapid transit system. Instead of relying only on limited or privacy-sensitive real-world sensor data, the city planners generated synthetic data to fill the digital twin. Such data artificially creates millions of simulated bus arrivals, vehicle speeds and queue lengths, all based on the statistical patterns – peak times, off-peak times – of actual TransMilenio operations. This approach transforms urban planning in several crucial ways, making simulations more realistic and diverse. For example, planners can use synthetic pedestrian data to model how elderly and disabled residents would navigate a new urban design. It also allows for risk-free testing of ideas. Planners can simulate diverse synthetic populations to see how a new flood evacuation plan would affect various groups, all without risking anyone’s safety or privacy in the real world. Making digital twins trustworthyFor all the promises of synthetic data, it can only be helpful if planners can trust it. Since they base major decisions on these virtual worlds, the synthetic data must be proved to be a reliable replacement for real-world data. Planners can test this by checking to see if the main policy decisions they reach using the synthetic data are the same ones they would have made using real-world data that puts people’s privacy at risk. If the decisions match, the synthetic data is trustworthy enough to use for that planning task going forward. Beyond technical checks, it’s important to consider fairness. This means routinely auditing the synthetic models to check for any hidden biases or underrepresentation across different groups. For example, planners can make sure an emergency evacuation plan in the urban digital twin works for elderly residents with mobility issues. Most importantly, I believe planners should include their communities. Establishing citizen advisory boards and designing the synthetic data and simulation scenarios directly with the people who live in the city helps ensure that their experiences are accurately reflected. By moving beyond static infrastructure to dynamic environments that include people’s behavior, synthetic data is set to play a critical role in urban planning. It will shape the resilient, inclusive and human-centered urban digital twins of the future. Wei Zhai, Associate Professor of Public Affairs and Planning, University of Texas at Arlington This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article. |
Spending too much time online? Try these helpful tips to improve your digital wellness (2025-12-22T13:10:00+05:30)
Bindiya Dutt, University of Stavanger and Mary Lynn Young, University of British Columbia Using digital platforms is increasingly the only option to manage our daily lives, from filling out forms at the doctor’s office or government offices to ordering food, booking a cab, paying taxes, banking, shopping or dating. Often, people are coerced into using apps or online platforms by the absence of any other options.Our social lives are equally entrenched in social media platforms. While the availability of services and opportunities on digital platforms may offer easier access or create an impression of wider connections, it also potentially harms our wellbeing. The adverse impacts of digital use have grown since the pandemic, as social isolation has increased dependence on these technologies. Impacts of excessive use of digital technologies range from physical problems such as increasing eye strain or dry eye to emotional concerns such as social media dependence. This in turn could trigger mental health issues due to online comparison and trolling. Other effects of platform dependence involve data privacy concerns with artificial intelligence and digital fraud. Likewise, social media comes with peer pressure, including the fear of missing out or social ostracism for not following digital trends. These affect our physical, mental, emotional and financial wellbeing. Recognizing and managing digital problems can improve our digital wellbeing. For some, digital autonomy refers to being in charge of personal data or having the right to withdraw consent from digital platforms. For others, it may be the ability to turn away from digital use and access non-digital options. Digital independenceChoosing to reduce or eliminate the use of digital platforms might seem like a feasible option. However, the coercive nature of these systems limits the availability of non-digital alternatives. For example, Meta’s refusal to share Canadian news media content had real impacts, highlighting people’s dependence on platforms for important news. The question of our autonomy as digital users is complex, as seen in the current conversation around smartphone use and its potential ban in classrooms. This touches on issues such as the relationship between self-regulation and government regulation. Another example emerges in the choices of how schools integrate digital learning — access versus screen time for example. Schools sometimes provide devices to students, and although this bridges the digital divide, it raises the question of whether students should be constantly available on digital devices? What alternatives can there be to digital platforms? How can we create an environment with varied choices while providing non-digital alternatives to accommodate individuals prone to digital addiction? Conversely, how might individuals averse to digital platforms or those lacking digital accessibility avail non-digital opportunities? Wellbeing comprises of creating a pleasant flow in all areas of life including physical, mental, emotional, financial and spiritual. Digital risks and digital overload can have detrimental effects on different areas of life including interpersonal relationships, productivity, sleep patterns and the quality of life. Wellbeing in the digital space largely depends on how we navigate the challenges and opportunities presented by technology. This could mean taking actions like monitoring screen-time, refraining from random scrolling, partaking in offline activities and understanding the risks of digital overuse. Focusing on balanced and ethical use of technology while addressing the potential negative consequences can help deflect negative impacts. Yet there are larger roles and responsibilities for platform creators and government bodies to protect us from digital dependence, such as offering non-digital options. While we do not yet have complete agency over our data privacy, we can gain agency over our digital usage by encouraging opportunities for non-digital alternatives. Tools for digital wellbeingTo manage digital dependence and overload, service providers can offer non-digital options. Engaging with technology without becoming dependent on it can contribute to physical, psychological, social and financial wellbeing. Incorporating some daily practices, creating new digital habits, and striking a healthy balance between digital use and non-use can support wellbeing. Tracking Paying attention to our daily digital usage and monitoring screen time helps us understand how, why and when we get drawn to our devices. Using the devices purposefully may assist in finding alternative activities. Taking screen breaks Turning off notifications or completely switching off for some time each day encourages us to take notice of the surroundings. Creating a digital curfew Setting up a specific cut-off time for digital devices some hours before bedtime can improve sleep hygiene. Tech-free days Assigning a day in a week or month which is tech-free helps to unplug digitally, limit digital dependence and help regain a sense of autonomy. Assigning a specific space for devices Allotting a space for all devices helps to keep them away from certain areas of the home which are meant for rest. Forming offline social connections Staying away from digital devices while meeting friends in person can curb digital usage and bolster social connections. Being wary of digital red flags
Learning how to identify a scam and validating websites before making online payments helps to avoid financial scams. Similarly, exercising due diligence when navigating online sites and social media platforms can help avert falling prey to cat-fishing which can lead to both emotional and financial losses. Bindiya Dutt, Doctoral Candidate, Media and Communication, University of Stavanger and Mary Lynn Young, Professor, School of Journalism, Writing and Media, University of British Columbia This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article. |
India leads AI‑forward payroll market innovation globally: Report (2025-12-19T11:09:00+05:30)
 IANS Photo New Delhi, (IANS): India is emerging as one of the most AI‑forward markets in payroll transformation, with 35 per cent of businesses identifying artificial intelligence adoption as the primary enabler of HR and payroll innovation, a report said on Tuesday. The number of businesses in India that identified AI as the driver in payroll innovation over the next two to three years was the highest across the Asia‑Pacific region, the report from ADP India said. Meanwhile, 68 per cent of organisations reported integrating AI to streamline workflows and reduce reliance on manual processes. The report, however, noted that only 12 per cent of Indian organisations have payroll functions fully equipped for future demands, highlighting a readiness gap that must be closed to sustain growth and resilience. "India’s workforce is entering a decisive phase of transformation as organisations adapt to diverse geographies, generations and employment models," the report said. Rahul Goyal, Managing Director of ADP India and Southeast Asia, said that "skills are becoming the new currency, automation is reshaping how work gets done, and employees are expecting work experience that supports both productivity and personal well‑being". The report outlined key HR and payroll trends set to define workplace strategies in 2026, including automation as a scale enabler, workforce management gains with biometric tools, a redefined employee value proposition with wellbeing initiatives, and digital, transparent pay systems. Organisations are expected to invest more in biometric systems, secure mobile attendance tools and geolocation-enabled solutions to ensure reliable records, it is forecast. Meanwhile, integrated scheduling tools will help reduce roster inconsistencies, minimise shift gaps and improve resource planning. Real-time dashboards will enable leaders to track attendance patterns, overtime usage, and absenteeism, transforming operational data into strategic insights."Interactive payslips, digital pay wallets, and earned wage access solutions will gain traction. Skills-based pay models are expected to grow steadily, particularly in technology, GICs, and other specialised service sectors," the report noted. India leads AI‑forward payroll market innovation globally: Report | MorungExpress | morungexpress.com
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Indian origin wellness institute plans a million-participant meditation event, eyes Guinness record (2025-12-18T12:36:00+05:30)
 (Source: IANS/Xinhua) Washington, December 18 (IANS) Around one million participants from across the world are planning to join a meditation session on December 21, organised by the Heartfulness Institute, an initiative that promotes peace and harmony through collective meditation, and is expected to set a new Guinness World Record. Speaking to IANS, James Joseph, Executive Vice President of HTC Global Services and a senior trainer for Heartfulness Meditation, said the event will coincide with World Meditation Day and feature a live, guided session. "On December 21, we are having a world meditation day, and there will be a live meditation at 9:30 a.m. in the US," Joseph said. "We are expecting about a million people from around the world to participate in this event." He said the collective effort is intended to create a shared moment of calm amid heightened global tensions. "The main purpose of this event is to bring up a level of peace and harmony in the entire world through 1 million people meditating," Joseph told IANS. The Heartfulness Institute, a global meditation movement with roots in India, is organising the programme. According to Joseph, the session will be guided by Daaji, the organisation's global guide, who is based in India. "This is being organised by the Heartfulness Institute, which is headed by Daji, who currently resides in India," he said. "He is the global guide for Heartfulness meditation, and he'll be the one who will be presiding over this meditation." Joseph described Daaji as the current leader of a meditative tradition that blends ancient practices with modern accessibility. "Daaji is currently the representative for what we call the heartfulness, tradition, or the … which is an ancient form of Raji yoga," he said, adding that "a modernised version is today known as Heartfulness." He noted that the movement today has a significant global footprint. Daaji, Joseph said, leads "this organisation of about 10 million meditators across the world who have either experience or who are practising meditation." The December 21 meditation is expected to see participation from across continents. "There are about 160 countries, people from 160 countries are going to enthusiastically participate in this meditation," Joseph said. Participation in the event is free and open to all, he said, adding that interested parties can register via a QR code provided by the organisers. "There are no fees involved. It is absolutely free," he noted. Reflecting on the broader significance of the initiative, Joseph underscored India's role in shaping global wellness traditions. "The greatest contribution that India has made is in the field of yoga and meditation," he said, calling the December 21 event "a great opportunity for us to contribute and be part of that movement." He said meditation offers a path toward collective transformation. "Meditation is the best way to transform minds, transform hearts to bring peace to humanity," Joseph told IANS, adding that participants would be joining "one million souls, one million hearts meditating together." World Meditation Day was proclaimed by the United Nations General Assembly and is observed annually on December 21, aligning with the winter solstice in the Northern Hemisphere, a time traditionally associated with reflection and inner calm.Heartfulness is rooted in the Shri Ram Chandra Mission, a global spiritual organisation headquartered in India, and has expanded worldwide through meditation centres, trained practitioners and digital platforms, with its leadership and guiding philosophy continuing to be anchored in India. Indian origin wellness institute plans a million-participant meditation event, eyes Guinness record | MorungExpress | morungexpress.com
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‘Digital doppelgangers’ are helping scientists tackle everyday problems – and showing what makes us human (2025-12-17T11:23:00+05:30)
Alicia (Lucy) Cameron, CSIRO and Sarah Vivienne Bentley, CSIROAs rising seas lap at its shore, Tuvalu faces an existential threat. In an effort to preserve the tiny island nation in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, its government has been building a “digital twin” of the entire country. Digital twins are exactly what they sound like – a virtual double or replica of a physical, real-world entity. Scientists have been creating digital twins of everything from molecules, to infrastructure, and even entire planets. It’s also now possible to construct a digital twin of an individual person. In other words, a “digital doppelganger”. A doppelganger is someone who looks spookily like you but isn’t. The word originated in German, and literally means a “double walker”. A number of industries are now using digital doppelgangers for a range of reasons. These include enhancing athletic performance, offering more personalised healthcare and improving workplace safety. But although there are benefits to this technology, there are significant risks associated with its development. Having digital doppelgangers also forces us to reflect on which of our human attributes can’t be digitally replicated. Modelling complex systemsThe development of digital twins has been enabled by advances in environmental sensors, camera vision, augmented reality and virtual reality, as well as machine learning and artificial intelligence (AI). A digital twin allows us to build and test things in cyberspace – cheaply and without risk – before deploying in the real world. For example, we can build and stress-test infrastructure such as bridges or water supply pipes under a variety of conditions. Once built, we can use digital models to maintain the infrastructure proactively and prevent disastrous and costly structural breakdowns. This technology is a game-changer for planning and engineering, not only saving billions of dollars, but also supporting sustainability efforts. Of course, replicating individual humans requires much more complex modelling than when building digital twins of bridges or buildings. For a start, humans don’t live in a structured world, but rather inhabit complex social and physical environments. We are variable, moody and motivated by any number of factors, from hunger to tiredness, love to anger. We can change our past patterns with conscious thought, as well as act spontaneously and with creativity, challenging the status quo if needed. Because of this, creating perfect digital twins of humans is incredibly challenging – if not impossible. Nevertheless, digital doppelgangers are still useful for a number of purposes. The digital patientClinicians increasingly use scans to create virtual models of the human body, with which to plan operations or create artificial body parts. By adding extra biometric information (for example, blood chemistry, biomechanics and physiological responses), digital models can also mirror real-world bodies, live and in real time. Creating digital patients can optimise treatment responses in a move away from one-size-treats-all healthcare. This means drugs, dosages and rehabilitation plans can be personalised, as well as being thoroughly tested before being applied to real people. Digital patients can also increase the accessibility of medical expertise to people living in remote locations. And what’s more, using multiple digital humans means some clinical trials can now be performed virtually. Scaled up further, this technology allows for societal-level simulations with which to better manage public health events, such as air pollution, pandemics or tsunamis. The digital athleteImagine being able to train against a digital replica of an upcoming opponent. Sports scientists are increasingly working with digital athletes to trial and optimise strength and conditioning regimes, as well as test competitive play. This helps to increase the chances of winning as well as prevent injuries. Researchers at Griffith University have been pioneers in this space, creating models of real athletes. They have also trialled wearable sensors in patches or smart clothing that can measure a range of biomarkers: blood pressure and chemistry, temperature, and sweat composition. CSIRO and the Australian Sports Commission have also used digital humans to improve the performance of divers, swimmers and rowers. The digital workerAs well as building virtual replicas of sports people, scientists at CSIRO have also being building virtual simulations of employees in various workplaces, including offices and construction sites. This is helping them analyse movements, workflows and productivity – with the broader aim of preventing workplace injuries. For example, scientists can use a model of a digital worker to assess how heavy items are lifted in order to better understand how this puts strain on different parts of the body. With 6.1 million Australians impacted by musculoskeletal conditions, preventing workplace injuries can not only improve lives, but save the economy billions of dollars. Building a digital doppelgangers requires a lot of very personal data. This can include scans, voice and video recordings, or performance and health data. Personal data can also be harvested from an array of other sources. These include as cars, mobile phones, and internet-connected smart devices. The creation of data-hungry digital replicas is forcing us to redefine legal rights. Think copyright, deepfakes and identity theft or online scams. The power of this technology is inspiring. But ensuring a future in which we live happily alongside our digital doppelgangers will require governments, technology developers and end-users to think hard about issues of consent, ethical data management and the potential for misuse of this technology. Alicia (Lucy) Cameron, Principal Research Consultant & Team Leader, Data61, CSIRO and Sarah Vivienne Bentley, Research Scientist, Responsible Innovation, Data61, CSIRO This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article. |
