Davos begins. World political, business and media leaders gather in cozy Swiss town to discuss our future. Many newspapers publish stories, but I found this IHT article interesting, and getting the main point right. US no longer owns globalization. Nathan Garldels also describes some behind the scene events in Davos.

Washington Post article reports that Chinese one-child policy prevented birth of more than 400 million children over the last 30 years. The policy has also contributed to an imbalanced sex ratio; allowed only one child, many couples choose to abort female fetuses, in keeping with the traditional preference of the Chinese for boys. According to the population report, there are 118 boys for every 100 girls, and the gap is expected to grow. By 2020, if the current birthrate remains stable, marriage-age men will outnumber women by 30 million, a “serious hidden danger which may lead to social disorder,” the report said.

MIT Technology Review has an article on visualization tools used by web 2.0 service digg to detect cheating (bots activity). IT also reports a breakthrough in battery business, with ultracaps developed by Texas based company. I have been saying it for some time on this blog. Human being is a very creative creature. Get ready for the most innovative decade in a human history. The silent cities for a starter.

Jeffrey Sachs warns that the world is facing a severe water shortage, check Guardian article.