General

The numbers vary, but it is estimated that we spend anywhere between two and four hours a day hunched over our phones. If you feel your head tipping forward, and your neck and shoulders getting tense right now, you may be suffering from ‘text neck’. Could this lead to serious problems and how do you correct your posture, considering mobile phone use is unavoidable? We hear directly from consultant orthopaedic and trauma surgeon Dr John Decruz, from Parkcity Medical Centre.

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You would think that after thousands of years, human beings would find more complex reasons to hate each other than race. Yet racism still prevails to this day. The question is… why are people racist? Is it biological or is it learned? On the second episode of Today I Learned, we speak to professor in social psychology and culture, Dr Karim Bettache on the psychology of racism. 

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In 2031, a large portion of the population will have adopted cryptocurrency as an official financial platform. But as the world of crypto evolves, so do its questions. Will this create a social divide? What happens to the "Bitcoin billionaires"? And is there a version of 2031 that doesn't involve cryptocurrency at all? Ellie Rennie, Principal Research Fellow at RMIT's Digital Ethnography Research Centre, takes us 10 years into the future to explore a world in which things like Bitcoin, Ethereum, and the blockchain are household names. 

Shelters provide a vital lifeline and a safe space for survivors of domestic violence, especially when they have nowhere or no one to turn to. But it’s more than simply providing a physical location. With a recently launched pilot programme by the Ministry of Women, Family and Community Development together with the Federal Territories Islamic Religious Department, fourteen mosques across KL will be used as transit centres for domestic violence survivors, and this is announced just days before the capital city is thrust into a third MCO. With Sumitra Visvanathan, Executive Director of the Women’s Aid Organisation (WAO), we discuss why this move is important, what it takes to run a domestic violence shelter, and whether MCO 3.0 could once again see a rise in cases of domestic violence. 

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If you are a survivor of domestic violence or know of anyone who needs help, you can call Talian Kasih at 15999, the WAO Hotline at 03 3000 8858 (24 hours) or SMS/WhatsApp TINA at +6018 988 8058 (24 hours).

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Employers who do not allow employees to self-quarantine while waiting for Covid-19 screening test results will have their premises shut down immediately.

Inadequate communication between different government branches has left businesses and individuals in the dark on the standard operating procedures (SOPs) of the third Movement Control Order (MCO 3.0).

The whole of Malaysia will be placed under the Movement Control Order (MCO) from May 12th to June 7th, as the country grapples with rising Covid-19 infections. We discuss the ramifications of this move on businesses, what consumers can do to ease their pain, and what the government can do to help these businesses find a lifeline again.

Theatre is powerful. It breaks barriers, helps us see different perspectives, and engenders change. Even in the workplace. Marie Tseng, Facilitator & Founding Director at Cultural Impact and Lim Soon Heng, Executive Director of KL Shakespeare Players talk about their recent collaboration - Exchange Theatre - which is helping the big boys in the corporate scene implement behavioural change in the workplace. From gender tensions at work and managing people, to safety or work-life balance, listen to how Exchange Theatre is being used as a tool to ignite change within an organisation.

Kevin Wu might have found success with his alternative meat brand, Ento, but that hasn’t stopped him from dabbling in a couple of other ventures. The Forbes’ 30 Under 30 awardee has entered the furniture business and also runs a law firm called Kevin Wu & Associates. We speak to Kevin about diversifying his plans, marketing crispy crickets for consumption, and finding success despite the pandemic.

Bursa Malaysia listed Advancecon Holdings has been awarded a total of five subcontracts worth around RM186 million for the ECRL project since the middle of last year. Beyond that it recently secured a quota of 26MW under the fourth cycle of the Large Scale Solar (LSS4) project. What else does this earthworks and civil engineering services provider have in store? We speak to Advancecon Executive Director Yeo An Thai to find out.