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Gordon Moore who worked for Fairchild Semiconductor in the 1950's was one of the pioneers in California who setup Intel Corporation. He helped start the new world of semiconductors and computer chips at Intel Corp. 

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Climate Reset Berlin, a coalition of climate change action groups, has introduced a referendum that brings forward climate change action goals put off till 2045. The referendum makes 2030 the new target date for 95% reduction in carbon emissions consistent with the 2015 Paris Climate Change Agreement. Berlin is 80% dependent on fossil fuels for energy needs in 2023. Proponents say there is great potential for wind and solar energy. Opponents say that it is too costly and will take up funds now allocated for childcare and education. The outgoing Greens SPD government of Berlin opposes it, as does the new expected CDU government. The Green senator for Berlin supports it, as do other private groups. Buildings need to be renovated and private transport curbed which would cost billions of dollars. Opponents say this would bankrupt Berlin. Supporters say not enough is being done. If approved it goes into effect immediately. Supporters include the Sustainability Group at Humboldt University, Germany's national cyclists association. They say Berlin has 52 acres of available land in Brandenburg that could be used for wind energy. ...

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Life for ordinary people in the GDR meant living in a communist state but for ordinary people it also had its good points, as shown in this report on the German Democratic Republic that lasted from 1949 to 1990. Female participation in the workforce was 90%. It was the most developed state in the bloc of countries led by the Soviet Union. Ownership of fridges or refrigerators was twice that of the western nations. Till 1989 the East German state known as GDR was accepted as a socialist workers state even by people in West Germany called the Federal Republic. Its collapse so quickly was not expected and was a result of a chain of events in which eventually no one was in control- a totally spontaneous collapse of a socialist state. For east Germans 33 years later it is still a difficult event to grasp as the collapse of the socialist state led to most of the young population moving to western germany leaving behind an aging population without the economic security for workers that prevailed in the former GDR socialist state. As a result even after billions were spent on integration east Germany never adapted to the change, and still feels separate from the rest of Germany, and people feel looked down upon. ...

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With childcare and part time jobs, age discrimination that makes it harder to get jobs after age 50 years, French women work longer for smaller pensions than men, says this report in The Guardian.

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European Union and at its heart Germany cut oil and gas use by 25% over a short period. The WSJ looks at one company that makes agricultural machinery such as harvester combines in Germany, and how it did this. The lesson from this experience- long dependent on cheap oil and gas supplies from Russia Germany was not expected to bounce back and cut its use sharply, when prices of Russian gas increased 20 fold. Not only did this German company slash gas use by 30% by making technical changes in how the machinery operated, and by using oil pipes, storing LNG from other countries such as Britain and Norway.  A 6% decline in sales to eastern and central Europe was offset by a 35% growth in sales in the US. By pivoting to the US German manufacturers have increased sales. The US has also become a major supplier of LNG to Europe. This makes it possible for Germany to conduct its own policies free of the kind of influence Russia exerted on Europe. So what does the CEO of German company Claas say about this experience- he says the export model is robust but in a different form with the US Europe's and Germany's biggest partner. The lesson of the past few years says CEO Bock- "Don't be dependent on one country." Not Russia, and not China. ...

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The question remains why the defamation law has remained a part of the Indian Constitutional law and the Indian  Supreme Court has upheld it. Under Britain there must be the sense that this would have put the unified subcontinental government at risk. Under India post independence this could be seen as an effort to keep the unified country India that emerged from the British Indian rule together as one nation. It may not be individual to individual defamation that underlies the spirit of this law. Its spirit may lie in keeping together as one nation a country with many languages and people after centuries of foreign rule by not letting the spirit that keeps it together be undermined in any way or form. Gandhi and the independence movement before Gandhi created the spirit for a new nation from many peoples and languages, this has now taken the form of timely delivery of the services and infrastructure that these peoples are entitled without any dilution of any sort, after all the hard work, sacrifices and aspirational effort of an earlier generation of leaders. ...

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A visit by president Biden to Canada to meet president Trudeau shows a unity of purpose of the two leaders who have a close Justin and Joe relationship, says this report in NYT. Before the trip an agreement had been reached by which the two countries can ease pressures of migration from the southern hemisphere. Migrants seeking asylum in Canada from the US will be turned back at Roxham Crossing. Canada will accept 15,000 refugees from persecution, violence or economic devastation, to ease pressures of illegal crossings into the US from Mexico. The trip comes after Trudeau's frosty relationship with former president Trump. It also comes as Canada and the US build a closer relationship to meet challenges of multipolar world from China.

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The world of social media and smartphones used to make withdrawals in seconds made the bank runs worse. $41 billion fled from Silicon Valley Bank in just 1 day.

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Increasing cooperation in fast rail, clean energy, semiconductors and defense manufacturing between India and Japan following the visit of prime minister Kishida of Japan to India. The plans for Japanese investment in India will be accelerated with this visit. PM Modi will visit Hiroshima for the G-7 summit. As India's development accelerates it is likely to make the G-7 the G-8 summit in coming years. The unity of purpose shown by Biden and Trudeau in Canada is seen today between Kishida and Modi in India. This follows the close relationship Modi had with prime minister Abe of Japan. Kishida was foreign minister in Abe's government.

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The new bridge over the Chenab river in Jammu and Kashmir, India, is the highest in the world. The Indian Express shows pictures of this civil engineering achievement.