Fun The lighter side of life; and more great PQ giveaways

Accountancy graduate’s silver lining

Doncaster’s Taekwondo world champion Bradly Sinden (pictured) fought his way to a silver at the Tokyo Olympic games. The 22 year old was leading with just eight seconds left, before losing 34-29 against Ulugbek Rashitov. Sinden is studying a Finance and Accountancy degree with Arden University. In a recent interview he revealed that he wasn’t sure what field of finance he wants to go into, but was excited by the modules on tax and tax laws! Each to their own. The spying scandal that has hung over Credit Suisse and led to the resignation of CEO Tidjane Thiam has been put to bed, following an out-of-court settlement. The bank had used private detectives to spy on former employees Iqbal Khan and Peter Goerke. Khan has now withdrawn his criminal complaint, although Swiss regulator Finma’s enforcement action will continue. Thiam resigned as chief in February 2020, stressing he had “no knowledge of the observation of two former colleagues”. It had originally been claimed that tracking Khan through Zurich was a rogue case. Then details of a similar surveillance of former HR chief Goerke emerged.

AI bigger than fire!

Artificial intelligence will have a bigger impact on humanity than fire, electricity and the internet. Who says so? Well, head of Google Sundar Pichai. In a recent interview with BBC’s Amol Rajan, Pichai said AI will fundamentally change how we live our lives, transforming healthcare, education and manufacturing. While still in its early development stage he said: “I view it [AI] as the most profound technology that humanity will ever develop and work on.” There was a warning too, as he felt companies like his had to ensure AI is developed in a way that benefits society.

STRANGE BUT TRUE

HMRC has forced the Department of Works and Pensions to pay £90 million for breaching tax fraud rules. The department apparently has been wrongly assessing the status of contractors (IR35) for a number of years.

Portrait of a scam victim

Contrary to popular belief, it’s not pensioners but the young who are most at risk from scams. A new study by Barclays discovered people aged between 21 and 30 are the most likely to have been conned in the past three months. There has been a surge in fraud during the pandemic and those aged 21 to 30 account for 29% of cases. Purchase scams, when people buy stuff online that never arrives or didn’t exist in the first place, was particularly prevalent among those aged 21-30.

Put a CIMA boot on it

Did you know that the CIMA is the heaviest and most robust of all Hanwag’s double-sticked boots, and is designed for serious mountain use? And that it is also suitable for forestry work or other activities that require sturdy footwear? These boots don’t come cheap either – we are talking over £200 a pair.

Carbon impact of video streaming

The average carbon footprint of viewing an hour of videoon-demand streaming is around 55gCO2e, the equivalent to boiling a kettle three times, according to new research. The Carbon Trust said that, at an individual level, the carbon footprint of viewing one hour of video-on-demand streaming is very small compared to other everyday activities. The analysis showed that the viewing device is typically responsible for the largest part (more than 50%) of the overall carbon footprint. For example, the footprint of watching on a 50-inch TV is shown to be roughly 4.5 times that of watching on a laptop, and roughly 90 times that of watching on a smartphone. However, end-user viewing devices are becoming more energy efficient due to a mix of technology advances, regulation and standards (e.g. around stand-by power and maximum power thresholds).

’ W E V E G O T T H E L O T

G Green wellbeing

W We have three copies of David Domoney’s ‘My House Plant Changed My Life’ to give away this month. He wants you to use the power of t houseplants to protect you from the pollution and stresses of modern life. Everyday products pollute s the air in our homes, and our mental health is t threatened like never before – but help is on hand t from the humble houseplant. f To go into the draw to win a copy of his great T tome send an email with your name and address t to giveaways@pqmagazine.com. Head up that t email ’House plant’ and we will do the rest. e

Su Doku heaven

We have a relaxing and enjoyable way to unwind from your study, work or even your daily commute (if you are doing that now!). The Collins ‘Big Book of Su Doku (Book 5)’ will test your powers of logic and deduction with 300 Su Doku puzzles. The answers are at the back if you are struggling! To be in the running to win one of our three copies you need to send your name and address to giveaways@pqmagazine.com. Head up your email ‘Big Book’ and you will be entered for this month’s prize draw.

Terms and conditions: One entry per giveaway please. You must send your name and address to be entered for the draw. All giveaway entries must be received by Friday 10 September. The main draw will take place on Monday 13 September 2021. TO ENTER THESE GIVEAWAYS EMAIL GIVEAWAYS@PQMAGAZINE.COM