Rina Diane Caballar

Researchers and scientists are constantly finding ways to train artificial intelligence to solve complex problems — from answering phones to driving cars — and they’re increasingly looking to nature for inspiration. Understanding animal behavior, it seems, can help intelligent systems discover optimal solutions.

That’s where ants come in.

Coffee is bitter, chips are salty, limes are sour, candy is sweet, and chicken broth is umami. These are the five basic tastes you’re familiar with. But how do you recognize each taste, and how do you distinguish one from the other?

The New Zealand–based company RealityVirtual uses the virtual reality experience to re-create ancient Egypt—a feat its founder is accomplishing with only five percent vision.

A UI designer brings together technology and craft: Human Interface Jewellery uses 3D printing to create unique jewelry pieces that tell a story and applaud women working in tech.

Te Wharehou o Waikaremoana, officially called Te Kura Whenua by Tūhoe, includes a welcoming area, dining area, kitchen and café, office space, and retail space. Located in a remote valley within Te Urewera overlooking Lake Waikaremoana (which means “sea of rippling waters”), the building represents the return for Tūhoe to Waikaremoana and Te Urewera, a return to the role of guardianship and occupation, after decades of exclusion by Crown agencies.

Government discussion surrounding refugees oftentimes revolves around costs and quotas; the human element can get lost in the conversation. In order to add a personal touch to refugees' experiences in a new land — as well as to help them gain workplace skills — a social enterprise in New Zealand is making sure they’re known not by the label "refugee," but instead for the talents and know-how they bring to their new home.

"Small talk is not simply talk for talk’s sake—quite the opposite. Small talk is no small feat at all. It’s a significant undertaking driven by the human desire to connect. And for a brief moment in time, engaging in this serendipitous act reminds us that we have more in common with one another than we thought possible. We don’t live a solitary existence; we’re in good company."

For many farmers and those in the agricultural sector, much of their livelihood involves giving up control to the forces of nature: The seasons, the climate patterns, and the precipitation levels are in charge. But what if farmers could take back control with the help of technology — particularly the cloud?

“By chatting with a stranger, you are being seen and acknowledged, and your connection to that one person may remind you of your universal connection to other people.”

Each weeknight, The Free Store redistributes up to 1,500 surplus food items to anyone who wants them—no questions asked. More than a solution just to curb waste, The Free Store has grown into a community food source.

"But pasalubong is more than simply a souvenir or gift, with layers of meaning and ritual lying behind the word."

"The safety pin’s origins as a fibula highlight class differences, but its current use to signify solidarity emphasizes support for marginalized communities. The safety pin has always offered a way to hold clothing together. Now it transcends that utility, promising to hold people together too."

"As evidenced by what has been carried out in different areas of the world, using names for natural weather events helps citizens, the media, and the government prepare, respond and recover. Naming natural weather events can be a solution to lessen the destructive effects of meteorological catastrophes—but it has to be done responsibly and by the right bodies for the right reasons."

"These incidents have not gone unnoticed as lawmakers and city officials are starting to take action to make women feel safer on the streets. Quezon City, the largest and most populous city in Metro Manila, revised its Gender and Development Code on May 16 to include penalties for sexual harassment of women in public spaces."

"To grow, blossom or bloom — this is what the Filipino word, lumago, means in the Philippines’ national language. But for the women of Lumago Designs, the word has symbolic meaning, as well."