Japan wants to promote new concepts related to drinking and marriage in order to revive its economy

The government of Japan wants to boost tax revenues. It has launched a campaign named ‘Sake Viva’ to promote the demand for varieties of Japanese wine. The intention is to help boost the industry. A pastime like drinking was natural with the previous generations and the government wants to revive it. Hence, the government has appealed to youth in the age group 20 to 39 to evolve innovative methods to revive the drinking habit among their peers. The range of products include sake (rice wine), shochu, whisky, beer or wine. It seems in 1995, people consumed an annual average of 100 litres per adult. This has declined to 75 litres per adult in 2020. Obviously, tax revenue from alcohol sales have also dropped from 5 per cent in 1980 to just 1.7 percent in 2020. Japan urges youth to drink, marry - all for the country and economy. This competition would cover every possible method based on new lifestyles and changes in tastes due to various reasons apart from new sales techniques. The final presentation of the ideas will take place in November in Tokyo.

Marriage is another worry for the Japanese government. This matter is personal to the people but declining birth rate is a matter of concern for the government. When the number of babies born in Japan fell to a record low of 865,000 in 2020, the government realized the need to address the issue. Local governments used to operate matchmaking services for its residents. In 2020, some local governments upgraded their systems. They wanted to harness the power of artificial intelligence and form better matches based on criteria of not only age and income but also hobbies and values. Japan now faces a dwindling workforce and is trying to boost its population. This is necessary because low birth rate would also mean a void in the availability of caregivers for the surge of elderly population in the future.

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Stephen Hawking says survival of mankind depends on Space exploration

#StephenHawking #artificialintelligence #londonsciencemuseum #spaceexploration 73-year-old Professor Stephen Hawking is a firm believer in the fact that the future of mankind depends on man’s ability to explore space as reported in dailymail.co.uk dated 20 February 2015. He made these remarks during a tour of London's Science Museum.
He went on to say that landing on the moon gave us new perspectives of life on Earth, and it is necessary to take note of this outlook which must be developed if mankind is to survive. While on the subject, he added that aggression should be wiped out of the human race and instead, there should be empathy to avoid a major nuclear war that could bring to an end civilization as we know it.
In the opinion of Professor Hawking, a major nuclear war could bring about the end of civilization, and possibly the human race. Therefore, space exploration was 'life insurance' for the human race and needed to continue.
By sending humans to the moon, man has changed the future of the human race but exactly how and to what extent can be known only after sometime.
Incidentally, in December 2014, he had issued another warning on artificial intelligence. He felt AI could spell the end of the human race. He was, at the time, speaking at an event in London and had told that the development of full artificial intelligence could spell the end of the human race.