Hello and welcome to The Intelligence on Economist Radio. I'm your host, Jason Palmer.

Every weekday, we provide a fresh perspective on the events shaping your world.

Reading the news over the past few years might make you think that there's more racism in America,

but a recent huge study suggests just the opposite.

The problem is that America's politics has become more polarized along racial lines.

And there are a few emotional reactions that cross language and culture barriers,

laughing, crying, and screaming.

We take a look at the very concept of the scream in popular culture

and why it's so widespread.

But first... More than half of the world's population is now online.

That still leaves billions of people who aren't.

They are catching up fast and nowhere faster than in India.

But the developing world's transition to wired lifestyles won't look like the first halfs did,

not least because of differences in language and literacy.

Businesses will have to figure out how best to serve these new markets,

and it may not always be the current tech titans who do.

Some internet trends, though, are starting to look like human universals. Stereotypes about how the developing world would use the internet are starting to crumble.

And in their place, well, cat videos.

It's always farmers looking up grain prices, except for the rare instances where it's fishermen looking up

fish prices in different ports close by. It's always women looking up maternal health, and it's

always kids, sweet third world kids, studying under a streetlight, learning English on their phones.

Leo Morani has recently been reporting on how the second half of the world is getting online.

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