We are drowning in numbers, and we no longer understand what they mean. Every day, headlines bombard us with figures meant to inform: billions in spending, trillions in debt, percentages signaling growth or decline. But for most of us, these numbers blur together. They register as “large” or “small,” but almost never as real. And that is more than a math problem. It is a civic one.
INFORMS has awarded Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) its 2026 Franz Edelman Award for Achievement in Advanced Analytics, Operations Research and Management Science, for reengineering how global cloud infrastructure is planned and delivered, applying advanced analytics and AI to orchestrate complex fulfillment decisions across its rapidly expanding data center network.
In the rush to adopt artificial intelligence, many employers are now requiring that employees use AI tools. As you’re using AI, be intentional and selective. It’s critical that you know yourself. Research published in Management Science found that AI is most valuable for people who understand their own abilities and limitations. Assess yourself, so you can factor this into your process for incorporating AI into your work.
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After a major investment in AI, Amazon says it blocked 10 billion attempted counterfeit listings in 2020. But shoppers should still beware.
Gaza militants have launched their “Sword of Jerusalem” rocket war with Israel by firing a symbolic salvo at Jerusalem and bigger ones elsewhere. Israel’s “Guardian of the Walls” operation responded with Iron Dome interceptors at home and airstrikes in Gaza.
On 15 August 2020, the Danish Heath Authority (Sundhedsstyrelsen) issued regulations, that among other things, required enforcement of physical distancing, both onboard trains and in public facilities. In many cases, the regulations set a target of 50% capacity. This was enacted on longer distance trains by implementing mandatory seat reservations, which were offered at no charge with a mobile phone app. However, on suburban trains and metros, there are no customer service personnel (conductors) onboard trains, and thus no one available to enforce these reservations. Copenhagen suburban trains have passenger counting technology, and so the national railway company, DSB, implemented a mobile phone app that could display the current occupation percent of individual trains in real time.
Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf said Tuesday that more than 79,000 residents were receiving the COVID-19 vaccine each day.
Gov. J.B. Pritzker has toyed with the idea of mandating that all college students at state schools be vaccinated prior to their return to campus in the fall. Although elected officials often veer into areas that are outside their purview, in this case, a statewide requirement makes good public health sense.
OR/MS Today is the INFORMS member magazine that shares the latest research and best practices in operations research, analytics and the management sciences.
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Analytics magazine showcases articles and research reports based on big data, AI, machine learning, data analytics and other new-age technologies.
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