I have been searching in vain for some fresh faces and thinking in the Chinese delegation to Davos. Representatives from other countries typically bring a broad range of perspectives on world affairs and some feisty commentary on the situation in their home countries to the table. The Chinese delegation, in contrast, seems overpopulated with senior officials and business leaders who simply serve up the party line.

Google, founded well into the Davos era, has quickly emerged as a blue-chip company, a member in good standing of the global elite. And as such, it has established an interactive presence at Davos. In an alcove in a key spot in the Congress Center, Google has set up a series of computers equipped with webcams. It brings leaders and participants by and poses the Davos question: What one thing can people, companies, and governments do to make the world a better place in 2008?  It’s very Google—intent on doing good, totally digital, and willfully quirky. It’s funny to watch older leaders coping with new media. Bono’s answer is likely to get a lot of hits.  But one of the first big gets was former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, who seems to be growing shorter and rounder—he rolls through the center like a bespoke-suited bowling ball—to peer into the webcam. (Click here to watch it.)

Also check out former Israeli Prime Minster Shimon Peres greeting YouTube viewers and waiting for questions to be posed by the webcam.

So does South Africa's likely-president-in-waiting really believe that taking a shower can prevent AIDS? No, says Jacob Zuma, the controversial choice to succeed President Thabo Mbeki as leader of his country's ruling African National Congress (ANC). Zuma's election as ANC head last month makes him an apparent shoo-in to take over the national presidency when Mbeki's term in expires in 2009--provided Zuma isn't first convicted on possible criminal charges arising from a long running local corruption scandal.

Anyone who thinks that sites like MySpace and FaceBook are the preserve of the young are in for a re-think. At a Davos dinner called "Add a Friend: Accept or Decline", the discussion was all about how community sites can be used for product testing and brand building. One of the participants, Forrester Research CEO George F. Colony, predicts that corporate participation on the social sites is "going to explode" in the year ahead.

Other Forrester predictions: