TISSNET 2022

Read the following passage carefully and answer the questions that follow:

 The COVID-19 pandemic will have significant financial implications for most communities around the world. We now have a global opportunity to declare war on climate change and to link our efforts to sustainable growth. Take the aviation industry as an example. For historic reasons, international air travel - along with the maritime industry - has not been part of government-led international emission reduction agreements such as the first Earth Summit in Rio in 1992 and the Paris agreement. Efforts are being made to change this through the International Civil Aviation Organization, and hopefully the industry's targets will align with the Paris agreement.

However, the efforts by the aviation sector to reduce emissions are still largely voluntary - despite good intentions from the industry. And now with the industry grounded - some airlines have, at least temporarily, reduced their capacity by as much as 85% - there is an opportunity for governments and airlines to cooperate on the projects that might change the industry, and to explore a world beyond what they could have imagined before the coronavirus.

We need to link financial aid packages with requirements for the development of zero- emission flight that for instance are powered sustainably - by electrofuels, for example - over time. The key to regulating well is not to decide on the type of fuel or design we want by law, but to make financial support and legislation conditional on the required amount of emission reductions or other such long-term goals that tie into a cleaner and healthier world. And we should be sure to make our response both design and technology agnostic. Any relevant law or policy should set goals, and then allow designers and engineers to create the innovations that will make a difference.

Financial stimuli across all sectors and industries must be purposed with creating a better world - one in which shareholder value isn't the only driver. Rescue measures should come with conditions attached; the French government's bailout of Air France is a good example. The rescue must be designed in such a way as to serve both public and planetary interests over the long term. Stimuli should be designed to reward value creation instead of value extraction by encouraging investment in sustainable growth and the reduction of carbon footprints. We must invest in design-led innovation so that the return on public investment is for the greater good.

Design innovation is already pushing boundaries in some sectors without stimuli, with an added benefit for the planet. Just look at how social distancing policies have sparked a virtual revolution; already, international companies are starting to step up the use of online meetings and collaboration. If we make it a part of our long-term work culture, we may in the future save ourselves many unnecessary day trips by plane.

Read the following passage carefully and answer the questions that follow.

At its highest level, Push Hands inspires images of Jedi contests between Yoda and Obi-Wan Kenobi. At its worst, it looks more like bad sumo wrestling between two drunks. Too often, it resembles the latter.

Push Hands involves two people, usually in a similar weight class, who stand opposite each other with their hands on each other’s arms. Each uses both his and his opponent’s energy to force his opponent to lose his stance or fall over. It is a two-person exercise designed to develop the skills of the Chinese internal martial art of t'ai chi ch’uan. Why is t’ai chi considered an “internal” martial art? Like the fictional Star Wars characters, whose skill depends on mastering “the Force,” the internal martial artist cultivates and directs internal energy, called chi. The use of muscular force actually interrupts the circulation of this energy.
Push Hands, therefore, uses the least amount of physical force to produce the biggest effect.

It sounds paradoxical that you can become stronger by relaxing your muscles, but it is easily demonstrated by someone who has trained in t’ai chi ch’uan. The hard part is letting go of the security blanket of muscular tension that you have carried with you since infancy. Even when we see a petite woman easily pushing two large, strong men, our minds are unconvinced. It is such an improbable event that we need to rationalize it some way.

That’s where Push Hands comes in. At its simplest, the game is to keep my balance and make you lose yours. Losing your balance—even the threat of losing your balance—provokes a primitive stress response that causes you to tense your muscles as a form of protection. Tension comes from muscles in conflict. We get in our own way. Push Hands helps us overcome that primitive fearful tightening and replace it with something much more effective.

At its best, Push Hands is done with seemingly effortless grace, like walking a tightrope or diving from a high board. It allows us to overcome our fears to perform more calmly and effectively in anything we choose.

Push Hands comes very close to being the national pastime of China in that a very high percentage of its people has engaged in it over the years.