Nexttech

Nexttech
Creating Generational Legacies

Saturday, January 25, 2020

Entrepreneurs Programme - if you turnover between 1.5m and 10m - you could be eligible

Grants available 


1. Up to $40k for consultants to help you grow your business 
2. Using PhD or uni grads on specific projects - $50k per student and government matches payment (can have 2 )
3 a commercialisation grant $for$ - $100k - $3m - this is a long process - but we’ll worth it - if you get it.

Here is a great video of how the grant works....



Saturday, January 18, 2020

Finland’s homelessness is in decline




Finnish homelessness is on decline as the country applies the “Housing First” concept. 

Those affected by homelessness receive a small apartment and counselling – without any preconditions. 4 out of 5 people affected thus make their way back into a stable life. 

And: All this is cheaper than accepting homelessness.

In 2008 Helsinki had tent villages and huts standing between trees in its parks.  The Homeless couldn’t find jobs – without a housing address. And without any job, they couldn’t find a flat. It was a vicious circle. Furthermore, they had problems applying for social benefits. All in all, homeless people found themselves trapped.

In 2008 the Finnish Government started introducing “Housing First”  and has set a vision 

Nobody should have to live on the streets – every citizen should have a residence.

 How it’s done

Housing and counselling - and no preconditions 

The NGO -  “Y-Foundation” provides  housing for people in need. They take care of the construction themselves, buy flats on the private housing market and renovate existing flats. 

The apartments have one to two rooms. In addition to that,  emergency shelters have been converted into apartments in order to offer long-term tenancies. 

Homeless people turn into tenants with a tenancy agreement. They also have to pay rent and operating costs. Social workers, who have offices in the residential buildings, help with financial issues such as applications for social benefits.

Y-Foundation receives discounted loans from the state to buy housing. Additionally, social workers caring for the homeless and future tenants are paid by the state. 

The Finnish lottery supports the NGO when it buys apartments on the private housing market. The Y-Foundation also receives regular loans from banks. The NGO later uses the rental income to repay the loans.

“Housing First” help Homeless people get a flat – without any preconditions. Social workers help them with applications for social benefits and are available for counselling in general. In such a new, secure situation, it is easier for those affected to find a job and take care of their physical and mental health.

The result is impressive: 4 out of 5 homeless people will be able to keep their flat for a long time with “Housing First” and lead a more stable life.

In the last 10 years, the “Housing First” programme provided 4,600 homes in Finland. In 2017 there were still about 1,900 people living on the streets – but there were enough places for them in emergency shelters so that they at least didn’t have to sleep outside anymore.
Providing people with apartments is cheaper than leaving them on the street
Creating housing for people costs money. In the past 10 years, 270 million euros were spent on the construction, purchase and renovation of housing as part of the “Housing First” programme. 

However, CEO of housing first, Juha Kaakinen points out, this is far less than the cost of homelessness itself. Because when people are in emergency situations, emergencies are more frequent: Assaults, injuries, breakdowns. The police, health care and justice systems are more often called upon to step in – and this also costs money.

In comparison, “Housing First” is cheaper than accepting homelessness: Now, the state spends 15,000 euros less per year per homeless person than before.
No miracle cure – but a high success rate
With 4 out of 5 people keeping their flats, “Housing First” is effective in the long run. In 20 percent of the cases, people move out because they prefer to stay with friends or relatives – or because they don’t manage to pay the rent. But even in this case they are not dropped. They can apply again for an apartment and are supported again if they wish.

Of course, there is no guarantee for success. Especially homeless women are more difficult to reach: They conceal their emergency situation more often: They live on the streets less frequently and rather stay with friends or acquaintances.

In case of new replublication, please cite Kontrast.at/Kathrin Glösel as the Source/Author. The rights to the content remain with the original publisher.

Thursday, January 16, 2020

Creating Water from Air - another Israeli technology wins CES prize




Israeli tech company , Watergen has created Genny - a water-from-air system that taps into atmospheric water using patented heat-exchange technology.


Founded in 2009 by Arye Kohavi, Watergen uses its patented GENius heat-exchange technology to create the drinking water.


GENNY received the Mark of Excellence Award at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) that annually recognizes the tech industry’s top smart home innovations.


Genny produces up to 30 liters of potable water for a home or office every day – significantly reducing plastic usage and disposal by eliminating the waste caused by drinking bottled water.


How does it work? 


After the air is sucked in and chilled to extract its humidity, a built-in blower draws air into the system’s atmospheric water generator. There, an internal filter cleans the air by removing dust and dirt. Once clean, the air is directed through the GENius heat exchange and cooling process, and condensed into water.


The water is then filtered to remove impurities and add minerals, resulting in fresh, drinking-quality water. Once produced, the water is continuously circulated in a built-in reservoir to preserve its freshness.


GENNY also has the potential to serve as an air purifier, circulating clean air throughout homes through a small tweak in the water generation process, using the already existing technology to create a multipurpose product.


The vision - to help people become more environmentally aware, and supported by its Chairman -  philanthropist Mikhael Mirilashvili, the Company has  set its sights on expanding its renewable and energy-efficient clean water solution to the 2.1 billion people worldwide who lack access to safe water at home.


Last year, Watergen’s large-scale system was donated to authorities in Brazil, Vietnam and India. It also assisted rescue and recovery efforts during the 2018 California wildfires and provided clean water to the residents of Texas and Florida in the aftermath of the devastation caused by hurricanes Harvey and Irma.


The large-scale version, called Gen-L, can produce up to 5,000 liters of clean water a day, requiring no infrastructure other than a standard electricity supply. 


According to the company's website, it is “perfect for villages, off-grid settlements and factories.”


“My first priority is not how to make money but to help people, the planet and make [a] kiddush hashem [sanctification of God’s name],” said Mikhael Mirilashvili


Friday, January 3, 2020

Referron V 2 - instructions in under 2 minutes



Download referron - easy to sign in - update your profile - send your business card - Refer a person to a business you know like and trust . - Track your connection and referral activity - All within 3 taps  

Wednesday, January 1, 2020

Is the aging population an issue or an opportunity?




Age expert, Jon Werner,  who runs a virtual accelerator, called silver moonshots, focussing on solving issues for the older adult, pointed out that 65 is the new 70... with life expectancy now about  75-85 (a few 100 years ago it was 50! ).

 #work  #innovation around #health #finance #education, #housing, #mobility #entertertainment and being an #olderadult is changing 


John pointed out an interesting bbc article  alking about the untapped potential of the longevity economy, written by Mari Shibato - 


Highlights from this article 

The baby boomers (with the youngest of us at 55  now aren’t keen to “get old and retire” 

The Aging  Population is growing

Over 80s are projected to triple, from 143 million in 2019 to 426 million in 2050.


The population aged 65 and older is growing faster than all other age groups, and global birth rates has been plummeting since the second half of the 20th Century (except in Africa) 


Life stages can be quantified in fairly equal measurements of 8000 days 

0 to 21, 

21 to 40 

40 to 65 

65 to 85 


If you make it to 65 years old, you have more than 50% chance you’ll make it over age 85 – 

.

The Boston Consulting Group projects that by 2030, the 55-plus population in the US will have accounted for 50%  all domestic consumer spending growth -  67% in Japan and 86% in Germany.

Governments are worried 

Ageing has generally been considered detrimental to a country’s economic health, since it reduces the workforce and increases burdens on healthcare systems.


At this year’s G20 meeting in Japan, Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda said that an ageing population could pose “serious challenges” for central banks with governments around the world concerned about public systems of health care, pensions and social protection for older persons  blowing out as the population of retirees will increase. 


How can we “unlock” the World’s Fastest-Growing, Most Misunderstood Market.

As the population of elders increases and become healthier - this longevity should be a massive asset to society  . This is  a group of consumers, workers and innovators - who can still be active contributors to the economy.


Spending Power 


KPMG’s 2017 report of online consumers in 51 countries revealed that baby boomers spend the most online at $203 on average per transaction, compared to ‘tech-savvy’ millennials, who actually spend the least at $173 on average.


Prolonging employees’ working lives

Workers are living healthier, longer lives, and an ageing workforce can be an opportunity to reap what consultancy Deloitte calls the ‘longevity dividend’ – being able to boost economic productivity from older employees.


In Germany, more than 21% of the German population is older than 65 - who are being helped by improved work conditions, improved econometrics at work and  advances and support by AI, and VR - reducing the physical demands of the manufacturing process.


Giving jobs to the younger generation 

Looking at the demographic shift, the work of the 21-65 year olds seems to be cut out for them - focussing on “looking after the 0-21 and 65 plus aged groups.  


The 21-65 workforce will be shifting from a “manufacturing workforce” to a “service workforce” - making for a better planet. 


The universe seems to maintain its perpetual balance and flow ! 




Links 


bbc article 

Saturday, December 28, 2019

Alpha DaRT is showing tumor shrinkage in 100% of cases.





Alpha Tau Medical an Israeli company, has developed “alpha DaRT”, an alpha radiation treatment is in clinical trials phase and is showing tumor shrinkage in 100% of cases.


How it works 

Alpha DaRT (Diffusing Alpha-emitters Radiation Treatment) treats the cancer cells without the  collateral damage to the surrounding area and the body as a whole. It provides a highly localized and effective treatment of solid tumors using alpha radiation. 


It has the capacity to destroy cancer cells, inducing irreparable double-strand breaks in cellular DNA.


THE ALPHA DaRT technology, enables the spread of alpha particles across entire tumors by utilizing the radioactive decay of an isotope called radium-224. The treatment is delivered by inserting into the tumor Alpha DaRT seeds which contain radium-224 atoms embedded into their surface. In the process of decay, radium-224 releases its alpha-emitting daughter atoms. 


These atoms diffuse to a range of several millimeters, delivering a high dose of alpha radiation along the way. The advantage of the alpha radiation characterizing Alpha DaRT is its extremely high “cancer-killing potential” combined with its short range of side-effects. 


These unique characteristics limit collateral damage to the surrounding healthy tissue while effectively destroying the tumor. Other radiation therapies that utilize beta, X-ray, and gamma radiation have longer path lengths that cause more collateral damage to tissue, and need to be dosed at higher levels to achieve the same local “cancer-killing-effect.”


The Initial Results 

In a recent study, Alpha DaRT was shown to be effective in humans for aggressive local, radiation-resistant and recurrent tumors of the skin and head & neck. It also demonstrated a very high level of safety for patients, causing no systemic toxicity, and only short-term mild, local toxicity.  The treatment led to tumor shrinkage in 100% of cases, and produced a complete response – total tumor destruction – in over 78% of cases! This sounds almost too good to be true.


Study results also showed that the Alpha DaRT possesses many attributes that can contribute to a positive overall patient treatment experience. 


These include:

• A single minimally-invasive outpatient procedure for insertion of the Alpha DaRT device, without need for any special shielding or an operating room,  

• A total treatment duration of only two weeks, where the patient can be at home and live their life normally, and

• Measurable tumor shrinkage in a matter of days


In addition to its value as a single-tumor treatment, Alpha DaRT has shown great potential in pre-clinical studies for the treatment of metastatic cancer, when combined with immunotherapy. Metastases are the primary mechanism of cancer death, so any treatment that can reduce the extent of metastatic growth will prolong patient survival and, it is hoped, reduce some of the suffering and dread that patients feel after a metastatic diagnosis.


Testing Alph DaRT around the world 


Many leading cancer centers around the world are now investigating Alpha DaRT for various tumor types, including breast and pancreas. The trials are taking place in locations including Israel, Canada, Japan, Russia, Italy and in the United States at prestigious institutions such as Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York and Montreal University Hospital Center (CHUM).



The Company


The Alpha DaRT technology has been developed by an Israeli Medtech  Alpha Tau, founded by CEO Uzi Sofer in 2016, promising a treatment for millions of patients worldwide.


The technology had been developed under the leadership of two professors from Tel Aviv University: physics Prof. Itzhak Kelson, and immunology Prof. Yona Keisari.


Alpha Tau is growing rapidly, having expanded from fewer than 10 employees in 2016 to more than 40 in 2020. 


To support the growing demand for Alpha DaRT, the company is building global production facilities in Massachusetts, Israel and Japan. Key investors in Alpha Tau’s growth include Shavit Capital, OurCrowd, Medison Ventures, Alan Patricof and Sir Ronald Cohen.


Could Alpha DaRT be a major breakthrough? 


Inspired by  - Jerusalem Post - Hillel Fuld 

https://apple.news/AHDueGnukOD-Gb3Wfww0f0g

Sunday, December 15, 2019

So what is 2020 and beyond looking like in the IT and Tech world?

The NextTech revolution. is all about the cloud says Dominic O’Hanlon , CEO of RHIPE .


It Ecosystems, Data , AI , Machine Learning, Data and Data analytics will be housed in the Cloud by AWS. Microsoft, IBM, Google all vying to get market share and upskill IT managers. 


CIO’s and decision makers are continually being pitched on why and which virtual server they should use and how they should use their virtual server! 


The virtual server with the most users is the winner. The name of the game is for these vendors driving consumption through whatever way it can. 


The way they will do this in the NextTech period - in my view - is training - by providing the best education, and upskilling users on a continual basis.... not only online, but blended and face to face. By providing users with certifications, and gamifying this usage! 



5 things that I can confidently call over the next 10 years - is 

1. Technology will be changing - and changing at such a rapid speed. New Languages, Apps , Processes and systems that are smarter , better  and easier are being developed and what was relevant yesterday is redundant today! 

2. Demand for service delivery skills will grow organisations have services running in the cloud, on desktops, laptops  and on their mobiles. 


Who and how will this data be managed and used?  

Will your team be able to represent your brand on their social networks? - that is where they are living . 


ITIL  is an acronym for Information Technology Infrastructure Library, is a set of detailed practices for IT service management that focuses on aligning IT services with the needs of business.  (This is a skill that organisations need and NextTech is fortunate to have Itvinder Mankoo - Australia’s leading trainer on ITIL sharing her knowledge with our clients.)

3. Creation of new Apps using  low-code and no-code app development will create a plethora of new apps - and teams will need to know how to use them


4. Cloud will bring more security challenges as they become more reliant on services hosted in the cloud, the more they allow remote access and the more collaboration tools are used.  Cisco 2019 Asia Pacific CISO Benchmark Study, showed that security teams are suffering from overwhelm. They  are constantly putting out fires, rather than proactively building an effective security strategy. The bottom line is that Teams will need to be upskilled on Cybersecurity.


5. Management of various suppliers and various tools and apps  Organisations have to deal with multiple cloud suppliers, as well as various suppliers of software and hardware, and each vendor has its own risk. Supplier (vendor) management is a big thing.... and a specific skill that needs to be learned - Project and Process management..... 


So, where to from here?

For you to be able to recruit, train and retain key staff, you will need to provide continual training and for IT personnel - not only certifications in cloud, apps and security, but also to upskill them in the soft skills of leadership, management, business, sales , marketing, systems and providing a wow service. 


Join us as our guest at one of our NextTech forums  to see how you can make a difference to your team through collaboration, learning and growth 

www.nexttech.edu.au