The British Elixir of Life. QAnon? Cue Kindness! Celebrating history’s worst dance video – and Elon Musk has designs on your brain!

Grüezi! I’m Adrian Monck, welcome to this World Economic Forum newsletter.

This week... Health over wealth, why poor Brits beat wealthy Americans. Preserving trees prevents pandemics. If you’re a newsletter nut excited by global trade, check out this one from Sean Doherty.

Remember newsletters are for sharing – So please share this one!

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 1?? Brits Have Life’s Secret Sauce

It’s not Tom Hiddlestone’s tea. It’s universal health care.

The Financial Times has the scoop:

• “[C]ompare the UK and the US. Both have similar problems with health standards and income inequality. But poor Americans suffer far worse health than their poor English counterparts. Top earners did better in the UK than the US on criteria ranging from diabetes to mental health, even though rich Americans earn more than twice as much on average ($144k vs $71k pa)...

Universal healthcare, as provided in Britain, seems to benefit everyone, even those with private healthcare. You have a problem, you just walk into a hospital.

• But the key point is that the problems caused by inequality — not only poor health but also low pay, unemployment and crime — permeate societies. If communities are polarised, the rich too are worried. In a dog-eat-dog world, you’re always looking over your shoulder at the dog just behind you.”

? One-third of young people still optimistic despite COVID–19’s dramatic hit on education and jobs.

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2?? Save Money and Lives. Prevent Pandemics

? Want to Prevent Pandemics? Plant Trees!

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3?? Ways to COVID–19 Immunity

Encouragement from medical experts.

Here’s how:

• “Functional immunity People whose immune systems have been primed to recognize and fight the virus—whether through infection or vaccination—could contract it again in the future. But these infections would be cut short as the immune system’s defences kick into gear. People infected might not develop symptoms or might have a mild, cold-like infection.
• Waning infection People who have been infected or vaccinated would lose their protection over time. But even if immunity wanes, reinfections would be less severe ... “You will never get as sick as you were the first time,” a researcher said.
• If experts are correct ... humans can expect to see a waning of the threat SARS-2 poses to people over time. Our immune systems will know how to deal with it. It could become the fifth human coronavirus to cause common colds.”

? Get more context with our COVID–19 Transformation Map.

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4?? What Kills Conspiracy Theories?

QAnon? Cue kindness. How do we deal with people who believe weird stuff?

It doesn’t need just malicious pranksters to take advantage of isolated individuals spending too much time on the internet. One writer explains what it has meant in her family:

• “I used to dismiss conspiracy theorists as contemptible idiots. Then one of my relatives became one. In the past few months I have watched someone I love — someone who used to believe in science, rational thought and the collective good — become an anti-vaxxer, anti-5Ger, anti-masker, a ‘plandemic’ disciple and a ‘sovereign citizen’ suspicious of any collective purpose.
• She has embraced so many conspiracy theories that they can’t rationally coexist. One minute I’m told COVID-19 is a toxin released from chemtrails in aircraft, the next it doesn’t exist. Then, it does exist after all, but it’s no worse than the seasonal flu.
• Then it’s caused by 5G towers, other times it was deliberately created in a lab in the United States. It’s part of Bill Gates’s grand plan to mandate vaccines and inject us all with nanotechnology, but a moment later it’s part of the world government’s agenda to introduce a universal basic income, destroy private enterprise and control us.”

Whatever the reason, if someone you know is sharing conspiracy theories, an Australian academic has some advice:

• “For families and friends, losing a loved one “down the Q rabbit hole” is distressing. Research shows that arguing over facts and myths doesn’t work.
• Like many conspiracy theories, there are elements of truth in QAnon. Empathy and compassion, rather than ridicule and ostracism, are the keys to remaining connected to the Q follower in your life. Hopefully, with time, they’ll come back.”

“World War III is a guerrilla information war with no division between military and civilian participation.” Marshall McLuhan (‘Culture is Our Business’, 1970)

? Conspiracy theories are spreading faster than the coronavirus. Here’s how they impact us all.

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5?? Work After COVID–19

For those who still have jobs, work will look pretty different.

? Building back business: Avoiding a trade-off between resilience and growth. 

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6?? It’s the 25th Anniversary of History’s Worst Dancing!

Before TikTok the only people allowed to dance on video were top executives.

And then only while launching software that came on disks.

For anyone born in the 21C, the launch of Windows 95 must look very, very strange.

Don’t worry, it looked equally surreal at the time.

? Even a dad-dancing Bill Gates can’t compete with Robin, Linda, Max and the team at World vs Virus – and it’s Apple recommended!

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7?? Brainwaves from Brainwaves

Elon Musk has designs on your grey matter.

What could go wrong?

? The Digital Future of Brain Health.

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Hope you’ve enjoyed this artisan crafted content, enjoy what’s left of summer in peace and tranquillity,

Adrian

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With thanks to all those folks without whose encouragement and critical feedback this newsletter would never get written.