Politics

Nuclear weapons continue to be built for basically two reasons: power and prestige. In almost every case where a country has decided to acquire a nuclear weapon they have done it either for power—the power to protect their country from external threats or a desire to project their power in the region.

Nuclear weapons expert and president of the Ploughshares Fund.

Osborne lacked gravitas and was seen as a political lightweight because of his high-pitched vocal delivery according to private Conservative polling before the election.

Governor of the Bank of England (2003-2013)

The head of the Bank of England, Mervyn King, privately criticised David Cameron and George Osborne before the election for their lack of experience, the lack of depth in their inner circle and their tendency to think about issues only in terms of their electoral impact.

Governor of the Bank of England (2003-2013)

Telecommunications has connected India- and has brought about openness, accessibility, connectivity, networking, democratisation, decentralisation and as a result- social transformation.

Telecom Pioneer & Advisor to Indian Government on Technology Policy

Almost all of the processes we use today were designed in the twentieth century, with the old mindset of command and control. Forms and data such as immigration, customs, starting a company, land records, birth certificates, death certificates, police reports, court cases- all these processes, designed in the twentieth century, are now obsolete. You have to redesign your processes to meet the needs of the twenty first century, and the web.

Telecom Pioneer & Advisor to Indian Government on Technology Policy

We are living through a profound era where speculative failure is simply not an option, and is fought tooth and nail by the government. This is a trap. Here I am the fool looking to fail frequently.

Hedge Fund Manager & Author of "The Black Swan" Risk Management

Globalisation is here to stay. You cannot, however, look at it as a natural phenomenon on which you have no influence- it's not like a typhoon or a cyclone. It's a process- and a process on which you can have influence.

Brazilian Diplomat & Foreign Minister under Lula's Presidency

If you see less poor people in the streets, and abandoned children, it makes you feel better- and that helps us to build a more independent attitude in foreign policy. That, again, has feedback in Brazil- making people more confident feeling that we don't always have to say yes to whatever is presented.

Brazilian Diplomat & Foreign Minister under Lula's Presidency

It is this sense of democracy which empowers us, the people of Brazil, to elect someone like Lula who- in turn- uses that same democratic power to pursue policies to successfully combat inequality. This then reflects on the psychology of the people of our nation.

Brazilian Diplomat & Foreign Minister under Lula's Presidency

In the case of Brazil, one of the most important things is the huge ethnic and cultural mixture which makes us a country with dynamism, vibrancy, and the ability to understand the psychology of other nations. We have problems, of course, but this is one of our huge strengths, and a huge foreign policy asset.

Brazilian Diplomat & Foreign Minister under Lula's Presidency

One thing that really helped us was NOT following the IMF prescription, and hence I think the fact that we insisted on having growth (alongside stability) was something that made for a big change in Brazil.

Brazilian Diplomat & Foreign Minister under Lula's Presidency

I think the biggest risk is the situation with the EMU as I have explained. I can see that this has the potential to derail the world economy in the same way the 2008 credit crisis did.

Economist who coined the term "BRICS" for emerging markets.

I think the 2008-2011 era has demonstrated that there are major problems with the structure and governance of the EMU and there is need for considerable change, probably more fiscal and political union, of which a common Euro denominated bond will be part of.

Economist who coined the term "BRICS" for emerging markets.

We clearly have more risk around the sovereign debt of mature and developed economies. Certainly that's an issue in the US- both at the federal and state level. We're seeing that right now in very dramatic fashion in the EU also. You also see the knock-on effects of aggressive monetary policy and weak fiscal policy driving activity in precious metals, commodities and also even in equities!

Former CEO of CME Group, global derivatives exchange leader.

If you look historically at the historical contours of wealth- it's primarily created through private ownership. That's always been the case- and I believe it always be. Having said that…. the lines begin to get blurred when you start to look at places like Latin America and Mexico where the state-owned enterprises are dominated by individuals- like a Carlos Slim, for example…. or if you look at state-owned assets being privatised in a place like Russia where former KGB agents are now industrial capitalists.

In 19th century England, there was no law against opium use until something like the 1890's. It was freely available, people didn't talk about addiction but rather about 'bad use of opium'... Charles Dickens used to use it extensively! It wasn't always banned!

Pioneering addiction medicine researcher and founder of addiction studies field