When Peter L. Bernstein published “Against the Gods: The Remarkable Story of Risk” back in 1996, it was a survey of a field few had touched before: the historical practice and science of oddsmaking and assessing future risks. Ironically, oddsmaking itself had looked into things previously unknown or taken for granted, especially in the early Renaissance era when the field took off. Bernstein writes that predicting the future was left to oracles and soothsayers until the introduction of Arabic numerals and the concept of zero. Great thinkers like Pascal and Fermat began to use those tools to study gambling and from there, began to extrapolate their findings onto the real world. Much of this hinged on the vital and complicated assumption that the future will be like the past. That was a new consideration for thinkers in the 13th century, but it made the study of future odds and risk possible, even though it could only be held true generally in a big-picture sense. Eminently readable, Bernstein’s book shows how we began to dial in predictions of the future to a useful level of accuracy. He connects great minds like Cardano with the modern insurance industry and points out that Vegas oddsmakers are part of a great tradition that overthrew superstition in favor of science. It is a classic worth your time. Bernstein’s Book on Risk Is Still a Classic WOULD YOU GO ‘AGAINST THE GODS’? You hear a lot about electric cars these days, but less publicized is the absolute revolution that occurred in foot-propelled transportation in the last five years — namely, that it’s no longer foot-propelled! You’ve probably seen the monowheel cruisers or similar electric wheelie devices, but let’s be honest: None of them are as Matthew- McConaughey-crusing-on-a-hot-day cool as the WowGo 3 electric longboard. The concept isn’t new, but lately, motors have gotten smaller and batteries more powerful. A 2.5-hour charging sesh will top off the WowGo 3’s stock battery, giving you over 10 miles of cruising distance before you have to swap the battery or start foot-pushing for home. There are other electric boards out there — a lot, in fact — but the WowGo 3 falls right in the sweet spot of what you spend (under $500 in some places) and what you get (a high-quality electric longboard that’s almost impossible to tell from the foot-powered kind). If you’re looking for a great way to get outside this summer, and taking a cruise in the fresh air on the world’s coolest electric board sounds like fun, it’s hard to go wrong with the WowGo 3. NO FOOT-PUSHING REQUIRED The WowGo 3 Electric Longboard Will Unleash Your Inner McConaughey
LET’S HEAR IT FOR BIG PHARMA Sometimes, the Big Companies Do the Right Thing Too
In this space, we usually try to highlight business successes, which often means a focus on up-and-coming companies or startups that show promise. Innovation and flexibility tend to be the domain of the little guy.
But not always.
This summer, as millions of Americans roll up their sleeves so the country can reopen, many are getting an mRNA vaccine that, until a few years ago, only existed as a concept. The idea was simple: Vaccinate people without actually using a weakened or dead virus, thus eliminating the chance of them actually getting the disease or spreading it to others. It’s a bit of a misconception to call the mRNA vaccine “new,” but there you have it. The vaccine being given today was already designed for the most part, and, in fact, it existed as the likely solution back in May 2020 with no changes since. Pfizer was the first company to get theirs approved, with Moderna hot on its heels. These two giants may be Big Pharma, but they also had the ability to test and mass- produce the vaccine. The question was whether or not they could be flexible enough to get things done quickly — and we see the answer to that as restrictions lower across the country. Getting through the process required unprecedented cooperation between Pfizer, Moderna, and other pharmaceutical giants. So did agreements on pricing caps and an industry-wide compact to not bow to government pressure to release anything before they were sure it was safe to do so. There are many evils in Big Pharma’s past — one need only look at the opioid epidemic to see that — but we should also acknowledge this success and see what we can take from it. No matter how large, old, or rigid your company may be, sometimes it pays to change things up and play well with others.
And that’s a lesson worth learning.
855-556-4677 AZCOMP Technologies www.azcomp.com/it • 3
Made with FlippingBook Digital Publishing Software