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July 17, 2018

Global Innovation Index: The Netherlands takes 2nd place in 2018 Global Innovation Index- by Mina Solanki

The Netherlands has moved up to second place on this year’s Global Innovation Index (GII), by Cornell University, INSEAD and the World Intellectual Property Organization. The GII ranks the innovation performance of almost 130 economies from around the world.

This year marks the 11th edition of the GII, which reviews 126 economies. The theme of the 2018 edition is “Energizing the World with Innovation”. This edition looks at the energy innovation landscape of the coming decade and possible breakthroughs that could be made in the areas of consumption, distribution, storage and energy production.

To assess countries, the GII uses 80 indicators that then fall under seven pillars. The average score of the first five pillars equals the Input Sub-Index and the average score of the last two pillars makes up the Output Sub-Index. Each pillar has three sub-pillars with a varying number of indicators. The pillars are as follows:
  • Institutions
  • Human capital and research
  • Infrastructure
  • Market sophistication
  • Business sophistication
  • Knowledge and technology outputs
  • Creative outputs
The number one country this year was Switzerland, which also took first place in 2017. The Netherlands came in second and was followed by Sweden, which dropped a place this year. In fourth place was the United Kingdom, climbing a place this year, and in fifth place, Singapore, moving up two places. The top 10 countries are as follows.
  1. Switzerland
  2. The Netherlands
  3. Sweden
  4. Britain
  5. Singapore
  6. United States of America
  7. Finland
  8. Denmark
  9. Germany
  10. Ireland
Read more: The Netherlands takes 2nd place in 2018 Global Innovation Index

USA: European and many other countries around the world now giving the middle finger to the US

July 14, 2018

The Netherlands - Weather: Summer is here to stay in the Netherlands- by Mina Solanki

It looks like the summer weather in the Netherlands is here to stay, at least until the end of next week. So, if you haven't already, now is the perfect time to take that trip to one of the Netherlands’ beaches or city beaches. Or, if you prefer, take advantage of the good weather and head on over to a national park or zoo.


On Thursday, July 12, frequent sun and temperatures ranging from 23C to 27C are forecasted. According to Weerplaza, up until the end of next week, July 22, the weather is expected to stay warm at 25C or higher.

On Monday, July 16, temperatures could even reach tropical values of 30C or above. This increase in temperature may make it feel rather stifling outside, as opposed to pleasant.

The Weerplaza weather model gives rather warm weather for the week of 23 to 29 July, especially in deep inland areas. In coastal areas, relatively higher temperatures can be expected, however, these are not as notable as in other areas of the Netherlands. During this week, a few rain showers are highly likely. 

Read more: Summer is here to stay in the Netherlands

Climate Change: Record high temperatures around the world

July 12, 2018

EU: Trump presses falsehoods about NATO, Germany- by David Rising, Robert Burnand Zeke Miller

Unleashing in-your-face rhetoric at the NATO summit, President Donald Trump pressed the falsehood Wednesday that members of the alliance owe money to the U.S. and took sole credit for higher military spending by NATO partners — a decision that preceded his presidency.

Trump also misrepresented Germany's energy picture, asserting coal and nuclear power are gone from the mix. Coal remains a bedrock energy source for Germany despite its hope to wean itself from that mineral and nuclear plants have several years of life before they are to be phased out.
Here's a look at some statements from the summit in Brussels:

TRUMP: "Frankly, many countries owe us a tremendous amount of money for many years back, where they're delinquent, as far as I'm concerned, because the United States has had to pay for them. So if you go back 10 or 20 years, you'll just add it all up. It's massive amounts of money is owed." — comments at meeting with NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg. In a tweet Tuesday, he said: "Will they reimburse the U.S.?"

THE FACTS: There is no such debt to the U.S. or to NATO. Therefore, no delinquency or question of reimbursement.

He is referring to how much each NATO country spends on its own defense and pressing them to spend more. Doing so would relieve some pressure on U.S. military spending. But there are no IOUs to collect from past years.

Read more: AP FACT CHECK: Trump presses falsehoods about NATO, Germany