Older workers face fresh threat, teaching AI to speak our language, and more top insights

During the week, the Daily Rundown brings you the day’s trending professional news. On the weekend, we try to keep you current on the big ideas that can help you see what’s coming. Read on and join the conversation.

Older workers face a brave new world: 56% of employees over 50 have been pushed out of their longtime jobs, according to recent analysis from ProPublica. And of those workers who find employment at all, only 10% end up making as much as they did before. How can workers protect themselves? First off, know your rights. Also, everyone — no matter their age — ought to focus on keeping their skills fresh, LinkedIn’s Dan Roth tells “CBS This Morning.” And in the meantime, Roth adds, line up a side hustle. “If you have a high likelihood of being pushed out, then you want to make sure there’s something you can fall back on.” ? Here’s what people are saying.

Have you been pushed out, demoted or not hired and suspected it was because of your age? What happened and how have you dealt with it? Share your stories in the comments.

We’re not having babies like we used to: 3.85 million babies were born in the U.S. in 2017, the lowest rate since 1987. And we’re not having enough new children to sustain our population, the Wall Street Journal reports. Such birth declines may put a strain on future hiring efforts. The trend, however, is not spread evenly across the country, according to the CDC. The Midwest and Southeast have higher fertility rates than the Northeast and West Coast. Just two states — South Dakota and Utah — are having enough babies to sustain the population. ? Here’s what people are saying.

A growing cancer-wealth divide: Between 1991 and 2016, U.S. cancer mortality rates declined 27%, resulting in 2.6 million fewer deaths, according to a new report from the American Cancer Society. What’s behind the shift? Increased preventative screening, improved treatments, diet changes and declines in smoking. Not everyone is reaping the benefits, though. There’s a widening gap in cancer deaths between Americans living in poor and rural areas and their wealthier counterparts, likely due to limited access to health care, among other reasons. ? Here’s what people are saying.

A layaway plan for costly drugs, and other health care predictions for 2019

Thousands of health care executives, analysts and investors gathered in San Francisco this past week for the annual JP Morgan Healthcare Conference to discuss where the industry is headed. LinkedIn’s Beth Kutscher and Jaimy Lee share a few highlights from the event. ? Here’s what people are saying.

• An Rx price reckoning: Drug price debates were front and center at this year’s event, with some predicting that Congress may have enough bipartisan support this year to take action. One bill, called the Creates Act, would prevent brand name pharma from paying generics makers to delay release of their drugs.
• Drugs, on layaway? Meanwhile, some biotech execs advocated for the use of installment plans to help patients foot the bill for ultra-high price therapies. One big fan of this idea? Spark Therapeutics, which offers an $850,000 gene therapy that treats a rare form of blindness.
• Tech and health get cozy: In 2018, tech giants like Amazon and Apple, among others, jumped into the health care world in very big ways. There’s more where that came from, with industry watchers predicting to see tech talent flock to health firms and AI make its way into the doctor’s office.

Helping humans and AI speak the same language: Today’s artificial intelligence may be able to detect if a patient needs surgery or when someone is committing fraud, but humans are often left in the dark on how these machines reach those conclusions. So, Google’s Been Kim has developed a kind of human-machine translator to fill that gap. The tool, called TCAV, allows researchers to ask AI systems to identify the most important pieces of information that led to its conclusions. By offering a peek into machines’ thinking, humans may be more willing to trust their recommendations. ? Here’s what people are saying.

One last idea:  Case Foundation CEO Jean Case argues that our greatest achievements often come from a willingness to “peek around the corners” — to go out on a limb and make an educated guess about what the future holds — and run with it.

“Invention isn’t ruled by public opinion. While there is no such thing as a crystal ball, many big bets were executed because someone boldly envisioned a different future — one not yet seen by others — and pursued it.”

Want to get ahead at work? Looking for advice from the pros? Share your burning career questions in the comments with #YouAsked and we’ll get experts to weigh in.

— Scott Olster