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07.12
The Growing Problem of Dementia
By Terrance Malkinson
The 112-page report “Dementia:
a Public Health Priority,”
developed jointly by the World Health
Organization and Alzheimer's Disease
International was recently released.
This report is designed to raise
awareness of the syndrome and the importance of
taking action nationally and internationally as
a public health priority. It is estimated that
35.6 million people worldwide are affected.
Forecasts suggest that the number of people
affected will double by 2030 and triple by 2050.
There is lack of awareness and understanding of
dementia. Dementia is a term for a group of
symptoms caused by disorders that affect the
brain. It is not a specific disease. In general,
people with dementia are not able to think well
enough to do normal activities. It is not only
difficult for the individual where it affects
their memory, thinking, and behavior, but is
also difficult and in many cases overwhelming
for caregivers, spouses and families. In reality
the syndrome is so prevalent that almost
everyone knows of someone affected.
The
U.S. National Library
of Medicine/National Institutes of Health
website provides a wealth of
authoritative information on the condition.
Considerable
research is ongoing to understand and find
effective treatments. We all need to be
sensitive to the challenges of those who have
the syndrome, to their families, and caregivers.
In particular we need to become aware of the
early signs of dementia, get medically diagnosed
and begin treatment as soon as possible.
Other Bytes
Here are some of the things
going on in and around the community:
-
The cover story of the June
2012 issue of Inc. [“How to Be a
Great Boss” pp. 68-76,
www.inc.com] focuses on an examination
of companies and leaders that have had
exceptional performance despite operating in
turbulent environments marked by constant
surprises. The first article is an interview
with Jim Collins co-author of the
entrepreneurially focused book Great by
Choice, where he discusses recent
research on companies that have achieved
productivity ten times the industry average.
A second article “Thirteen Ways of Looking
at a Leader” provides a snapshot of the most
prevalent types of leaders, further source
of information on each leadership style, and
people who exemplify each style.
-
A profile of Richard Branson
[“The Good Sir Richard,” pp. 30-38] and his
innovation strategies is provided by Jason
Ankeny in the June 2012 issue of
Entrepreneur [www.entrepreneur.com].
An interesting inset “Words of Wisdom”
summarizes his five perspectives on building
a business. A second article in the same
issue of Entrepreneur [“100 Brilliant
Companies to Watch,” pp. 52-68] provides
detailed profiles of a number of technology
companies and snapshots of others that are
believed to be the best examples in this
year’s annual survey of the innovation
excellence.
-
“Solar Super Storms: How
They Could Impact Our High-Tech World” is
the cover story of the June 2012 issue of
National Geographic [221(6): 36-53,
www.ngm.com]. Timothy Ferris discusses
the etiology and effects of solar storms to
our planet. Ferris concludes with a
suggestion that we should be doing more
research on solar storms so that we are
better able to predict their strength and
likely arrival time. By doing so we might be
able to take steps to prepare and mitigate
the devastating effects that such
extra-terrestrial events cause.
-
Ken Demead discusses
father-son bonding through engagement in
shared technology projects in his article
“How to Be a Geek Dad” in the June 2012
issue of Wired [pp.126-139,
www.wired.com]. Inspiring children at a
young age to follow their ideas teaches them
creativity, innovation and entrepreneurial
skills that will serve them well as they
pursue their education, as well as on the
job.
-
The spotlight of the June
2012 issue of Harvard Business Review
[90(6):64-94] is on leadership. Three
articles discuss interesting topics,
including: “How Managers Become Leaders”;
“Leadership is a Conversation”; and
“Leadership Development in the Age of the
Algorithm.” Even though much has been
written on leadership and one might wonder
why more articles, the reality is that the
business environment is not static; it is
ever changing. Those who are successful take
the time to become informed, analyze and
implement where appropriate new ideas.
-
We are all aware of the
increasing presence of the technology in
financial transactions. Spectrum's
June cover story, “The Last Days of Cash:
How E-money Technology is Plugging us Into
the Digital Economy” [49(6):27-64], focuses
on a special report on the future of money.
Terrance Malkinson is a
communications specialist, business analyst and
futurist. He is currently an international
correspondent for IEEE-USA Today's Engineer, an
associate editor for IEEE Canadian Review, and a
member of the editorial advisory board of IEEE
The Institute. He was Vice-Chair of the IEEE-USA
Communications Committee (2004-2010), and
editor-in-chief of IEEE-USA Today's Engineer
Digest (2004-2008). He was an elected Senator of
the University of Calgary and an elected
Governor of the IEEE Engineering Management
Society as well as an elected Administrative
Committee member of the IEEE Professional
Communication Society. He has been the editor of
several IEEE conference proceedings, and past
editor of IEEE Engineering Management. He is the
author of more than 420 publications, and is an
accomplished triathlete. His career path
includes being an accomplished technical
supervisor and medical researcher at the
University of Calgary a business proposal
manager for the General Electric Company, an
associate for Sears Canada Inc. and research
administrator with the School of Health and
Public Safety/Applied Research and Innovation
Services at SAIT Polytechnic in Calgary Canada.
The author is grateful to the
professional support of the Haskayne School of
Business Library at the University of Calgary.
He can be reached at
todaysengineer@ieee.org.
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