High-tech automation is eliminating jobs like Pac-Man gobbling yellow dots. According to a 2013 study by the Oxford Martin School, 47 percent of U.S. jobs are susceptible to takeover by machines in the coming decades. 　Whether you work in manufacturing, the service industry, in medicine, law or any number of other industries, chances are that your occupation is in the middle of an unprecedented algorithm-driven paradigm shift. One area we tend to view as safe from automation is creativity — but

Dec. 8, 2015

The two-week United Nations conference on climate change is halfway over, and no matter what else happens, it has already been a clear-cut success in two critical areas.　As important as a global accord is, the most influential actors on climate change have been cities and businesses, and leaders in both groups made it clear that they will not wait for an agreement that, if it comes together, won’t even take full effect until 2020.　Mayors and officials representing more than 500 cities organized

Dec. 8, 2015

Global leaders are gathered in Paris for the COP21 climate summit. Given Asia-Pacific’s size and its contribution to global greenhouse gas emissions, its voice and commitment are critical to achieving a comprehensive agreement on climate change. Many Asia-Pacific countries are developing and must focus on achieving sustained economic growth and development.  　Of the 49 regional members of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific, 43 have a light climate footprin

Dec. 7, 2015

The Pentagon struck a blow for both military preparedness and sex equality Thursday by opening all combat jobs to women. Allowing female troops who meet the same standards as men to fight the enemy improves a nation’s ability to protect itself and its foreign interests.　But as the military takes this big step toward equal treatment of men and women, it inevitably comes up against a next one: the need for equality in Selective Service registration. Fair treatment demands that young women — ages 1

Dec. 7, 2015

The IMF announced on Nov. 30 that its executive board had approved the inclusion of the Chinese yuan into the basket of currencies making up the SDR, joining the U.S. dollars, Euro, Yen and British Pound, to be effective on Oct. 1, 2016. 　This is a symbolic acceptance of the yuan as a major international currency and is not surprising. China is now the world’s largest trading nation in terms of value of exports plus imports, and China’s GDP in current market value will likely surpass that of the

Dec. 7, 2015

Brazil’s legislature has opened impeachment proceedings against the country’s president. The charges may or may not be justified, but if ever there were a political culture that deserves to be put on trial, it is Brazil’s.　Brazil’s voters — never mind its legislators — can hardly be blamed for their unhappiness with President Dilma Rousseff. She has overseen a worsening economy and has been embroiled (but so far not implicated) in a long-running corruption scandal involving Petrobras, Brazil’s s

Dec. 7, 2015

In the run-up to the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP21) in Paris, more than 150 governments submitted plans to reduce carbon emissions by 2030. Many observers are asking whether these reductions are deep enough. But there is an even more important question: Will the chosen path to 2030 provide the basis for ending greenhouse-gas emissions later in the century?　According to the scientific consensus, climate stabilization requires full decarbonization of our energy systems and zero n

Dec. 6, 2015

Every year, forest fires ravage Indonesia, causing massive environmental, social and economic devastation. This year’s fires are the largest in nearly 20 years, destroying 3 million hectares of land and causing an estimated $14 billion in losses related to agriculture, forest degradation, health, transportation and tourism. 　Perhaps even more alarming is the climate impact. Indonesia is already among the world’s biggest carbon emitters. Thanks to the fires, its daily average emissions this Septe

Dec. 6, 2015

The European Central Bank introduced, by a large majority, a new twist to its stimulus agenda Thursday. From here on, the principal repayment on government bonds purchased under QE will be used to buy more bonds. It’s hard to overstate the significance of the reinvestment provision, which ECB Board Member Yves Mersch called “the most important” element of Thursday’s announcement. 　ECB President Mario Draghi tried his best to have it both ways. He portrayed the move as an extension of the QE time

Dec. 6, 2015

Brazil is in a bad way. The economy, already in deep recession, is possibly sliding into outright depression, according to Goldman Sachs. The public deficit and inflation are rising, and Congress is quarreling the country into insolvency. So you might expect its political leaders to drop their fists and rally for the national interest. 　Brazilians should be so lucky. 　President Dilma Rousseff did, in fact, call her closest aides for an unscheduled meeting in Brasilia on Wednesday, but the nation

Dec. 6, 2015

The drama never ends for Argentina, land of failed expectations and the setting for a great Broadway musical. Next week, a new leading man steps into the role of president with a chance to fix the broken economy and set a positive example for South American democracy.　Mauricio Macri is an outsider, which in Argentina means he isn’t a Peronist, the dominant political force for ages (“Evita” was the celebrated Eva Peron). If Macri turns out to be the least theatrical political figure ever, that wo

Dec. 6, 2015

Russian President Vladimir Putin’s intervention in the Syrian conflict has been welcomed by some as a moment for the Kremlin to “come in from the cold.” Russia’s conflict with the Islamic State, the argument goes, has aligned the country’s interests with those of the West. Even Turkey’s downing of a Russian warplane does not seem to have deflated this optimism.　Indeed, at a recent press conference, U.S. President Barack Obama again urged Putin to join the alliance against the Islamic State. And

Dec. 4, 2015

Was the San Bernardino shooting an act of terrorism or workplace rage? It doesn’t really matter, in terms of the need for better regulation of assault rifles and semiautomatic weapons.　The growing evidence that this latest attack was terrorism should galvanize a citizen movement to demand better protection against such mass shootings, whether they’re the work of Muslim extremists, enraged antiabortion militants or mentally unstable loners. 　“Enough is enough,” said President Obama after the shoo

Dec. 4, 2015