Contents

  1. The controversial neurologist who believes you can dementia-proof your brain
  2. Airborne Microplastics
  3. Quantum Theory: Centenary Year
  4. US Trade Tariffs and Liberation Day
  5. Trade Tariffs, Apple and India
  6. FTC v Meta
  7. FTC v Google
  8. Google’s AI Agent Interoperability Initiative: Agent2Agent Protocol
  9. LlamaCon

The controversial neurologist who believes you can dementia-proof your brain

Dr Dale Bredesen, a neurologist, is known for his claims that Alzheimers can be treated. The prevelant view in the wider community though is that there is no cure for any form of Dementia. That said, there certain diets (a diet based on traditional Mediterranean diet), and a good amount of exercise that is known to reduce the risk of brain degeneration.

Without waiting for proof, there’s probably no harm in following as much of the known best practices to reduce ones risk of the disease: frequent exercise and clean eating. The earlier in life these practices are adopted, the better, but “your forties and fifties are really the sweet spot when it comes to dementia prevention,” Dr Bredesen says.

Eating right, avoiding insuling resistance

  • Mediterranean diet, with lots of vegetables and oily fish
  • Ketogenic diet (high fat, low carb)
  • Small amount of fasting (~12 hours, starting atleast 3 hours before bed); avoid longer intermittent fasting if trying to ward off Dimentia
  • Low-mercury fish, pastured chicken and eggs
  • Fibre and healthy omega-3 fats from sources such as avocados, nuts and seeds

Exercise right

  • 30-40 mins, 5 times a week
  • 3-4 strength training sessions + regular cardio
  • Strength training helps with insuling sensitivity
  • HIIT is great, though neither a replacement for longer cardio or dedicated strength training sessions

Get enough sleep (but not too much)

  • Sweet spot is 7 hours, but everyones needs can vary
  • 1 hour of deep sleep + 1.5 hours of REM sleep is important
  • Regularly sleeping 9 or more hours is bad

Brain training

  • “take on a small cognitive challenge each day, a medium cognitive challenge each month, and a big cognitive challenge each year”
  • Small challenge = “new” (i.e. not repeating too many sodokus, if you’ve been doing them for a while) kinds of puzzles, simply setup desk in new part of the house
  • Medium challenge = cooking “new” recipies
  • Large challenge = “true mastery” of a subject, learn a language, become a chess expert etc

References

Airborne Microplastics

Researchers have found a high volume of microplastics in the lungs of birds studied as part of a research. They’ve called for urgent additional research to study the harmful effects these microplastics may be having on humans.

Another set of researchers have found microplastics in vegetation, arising from absorption of microplastics in the atmosphere.

References

Quantum Theory: Centenary Year

In recognition of the quantum centenary, the United Nations has designated 2025 as the International Year of Quantum Science and Technology.

So what is Quantum Theory? Quantum theory, also known as quantum mechanics or quantum physics, is the fundamental framework in modern physics that describes the behavior of matter and energy at the smallest scales-typically at and below the level of atoms and subatomic particles. Quantum theory is essential for explaining phenomena that classical physics cannot, such as structure of atoms and molecules, behaviour of semiconductors and lasers, workings of nuclear reactions and radioactive decay, operation of quantum computers etc.

Key principles:

  • Quantization: Energy, matter, and other physical properties exist in discrete units called “quanta” rather than being continuous
  • Wave–Particle Duality: Particles like electrons and photons exhibit both particle-like and wave-like properties, depending on how they are observed
  • Uncertainty Principle: There are fundamental limits to how precisely certain pairs of physical properties (like position and momentum) can be known at the same time. This is encapsulated in Heisenberg’s uncertainty principle
  • Probability and Measurement: Quantum mechanics does not predict exact outcomes, but rather the probabilities of different outcomes. The act of measurement affects the system being observed, making it impossible to observe certain properties without disturbing them Superposition: Quantum systems can exist in multiple states at once until measured, at which point the system ‘collapses’ into one of the possible states

References

US Trade Tarrifs and Liberation Day

Trump announced new tariffs on US imports on 3/April, which was dubbed as “Liberation day”. A 10% baseline tariff applies to imports from all countries. Additional reciprocal higher tariffs would apply on the “60 worst offending countries” with which US has the largest trade deficits. This has meant of tariffs of up to 50% on some countries. UK will attract the baseline tariff only and no additional higher tariffs.

The US administration believes that the tariffs will: 1) Reduce US trade deficits, 2) Force companies to move manufacturing to the US, 3) Rectify unfavourable trading practices with some countries and 4) Raise revenue for the US.

Days after the so-called “liberation day”, on 9/April, Trump announced a pause on the reciprocal tariffs with the tariffs on imports from China being the only exception. The US administration intends to negotiate trade deals with its trading partners during this 90 day pause period. Before the pause was announced, Wall Street banks had warned that the trade levies would send the US economy into recession, increasing inflation and unemployment.

The announcement of the pause was followed by a 12% rise in Nasdaq, its biggest rise since 2001.

The baseline tariff of 10% remains applicable across the board even during this pause period.

References

Trade Tariffs, Apple and India

Trump excludes smartphones, computers and chips from tariffs, including those imported from China. Both Apple and Nvidia stocks were up following the announcement on 12/April. Like the 90 day pause announced to tariffs, this exclusion on electronics import is also temporary. This is significant because in 2024 US imported smartphones worth $41 billion from China, which amounts to approximately 9% of total imports value from China.

As per a report in FT, Apple aims to source 60mn iPhones from India by end of 2026, instead of China, marking a shift in Apple’s strategy on imports. This would mean doubling the output as of date from India. India is currently slated to attract 26% tariffs on imports by US, unlike the over 100% that the Trump administration may end up imposing on China. In addition, with JD Vance’s visit to India to broker more trade deals, there’s potential of tariffs becoming even more favourable than the current 26%.

References

FTC v Meta

FTC alleges that Meta illegally acquired Instagram (for $1bn in 2012) and WhatsApp (for $19bn in 2014) to suppress competition in the Social Media sector, which for the purposes of the trial FTC has defined to exclude apps such as TikTok and YouTube because FTC believes they are more for watching videos by creators than for following family and friends.

Meta is defending its position by arguing against the definition of Social Media and believes that apps such as YouTube and TikTok are very much its competitors and once you include them in the mix Meta can no longer be considered a monopoly.

Should the FTC win the trial, Meta could be forced to divest its ownership of Instagram and WhatsApp in the next few years.

References

FTC v Google

Opinions are split whether Monopolies held by Big Tech stifles or supports innovation. The writes argues it stifles innovation and presents examples from the past where breaking up monopolies has helped drive innovation. The example cited is that of telecommunication giant AT&T, from back in 1956 where it was forced to license its patents and eventually broken up, driving the digital revolution.

While not stated in this article, I’ve read of opposite arguments where giants like Alphabet/Google have supported innovation by funding self driving car companies such as Waymo.

US FTC ruled last year that Google holds a monopoly in Online search market, and last week upheld ruling that Google also holds a monopoly in Digital Advertising. Europe is also preparing its ruling against Google and its monopoly in Digital Advertising. Google isn’t the only company on the radar of antitrust organisations; Meta is also currently under trial for its monopoly in Social Media sector.

References

Google’s AI Agent Interoperability Initiative: Agent2Agent Protocol

Google has announced the launch of the Agent2Agent (A2A) protocol, an open standard designed to enable seamless communication and collaboration between AI agents, regardless of their underlying technology, framework, or vendor. This initiative, developed with input from over 50 technology partners, aims to break down the silos that currently limit AI agents to isolated tasks within enterprises, unlocking new levels of automation, efficiency, and innovation

References

LlamaCon

  • Meta introduced a standalone Meta AI chatbot app for consumers, positioned as a direct competitor to ChatGPT. The app includes a social discovery feed where users can share AI-generated content and interact with AI in voice mode.
  • Meta announced that it would be entering partnerships with Cerebras and Groq, the current leaders when it comes to inference speed. Both provide optimised hardware that outperforms GPUs for AI inference tasks
  • A new developer-facing Llama API was announced, allowing developers to build applications using Llama models in the cloud. The API promises fast inference, easy customization, and no vendor lock-in. Importantly, Meta stated that data processed through the API will not be used to train its models, addressing privacy concerns for enterprise developers

References

What is this?

Just trying to carve out time to read/watch/learn more when I can. Posting about it somewhat publicly is meant to nudge me when the motivation starts to dwindle.

Inspired by Chamath Palihapitiya’s What I read this week series.