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Consumers likely to switch from beef to chicken this year
MADISON – As the pandemic and its effects have crossed the world, consumers and producers of meat felt its effects. Brenda Boetel, University of Wisconsin-River Falls professor and chair of the Department of Agricultural Economics, outlined the outlook for meat supplies at a recent event in Madison.
As many consumers will attest, the meat supply in 2021 was down relative to what it was in 2020. But the meat supply in 2022 should be “pretty stable,” she said. That will, however, contribute to retail prices for meat that are high and will continue to stay high.
In 2021 the total meat supply was down 0.8 percent and in 2022 the projection is that supply will be down 0.2 percent.
But while the supply will be stable overall, rising beef prices and pork and poultry prices that are not rising as quickly mean that consumers will likely gravitate to chicken and steer clear of higher-prices pork and beef.
The monthly retail price average for beef per pound in December 2021 was $7.35; for pork it was $4.74; and for broilers it was $2.22. Beef prices had declined and then went back up, she noted.
One metric used by the marketplace is the differential, comparing the price of beef to another meat. The beef-to-pork differential now stands at $2.61 per pound. By comparison, the average from 2018 to 2020 was a much lower $2.05. The current beef-to-broiler difference is $5.13 per pound, much higher than the average from 2018 to 2020, which was $4.01. Those numbers likely will point to consumers buying less beef and more chicken.
Retail prices have been high and they continue to stay high, she said. There was a big jump in prices in 2020, when things started to shut down due to Covid. Prices came down and since then they’ve been going back up. “Some prices have to do with supply and issues with some packers. What we’re seeing now is that beef prices are increasing at a greater rate and that chicken prices haven’t been increasing as much,” she said.
Boetel spoke in person during an Agricultural Outlook Forum on the UW-Madison campus January 25. Attendance was down for the annual event, doubtless due to Covid concerns, but during the daylong event as many as 60 people were following along on sponsor Renk Agribusiness Institute’s YouTube channel (including this reporter.)
To see graphs and charts used by Boetel in her presentation, go to renk.aae.wisc.edu/2022-agricultural-outlook-forum/. A link on that page also allows visitors to view a video of her presentation and those given by other speakers during the forum.
Her projections for the coming year included: lower feed prices, rising farmland values and stable production of protein (beef, pork and poultry) compared to last year. Boetel said Covid will continue to challenge slaughter capacity as sick workers and slower line speeds along with possible shutdowns will impact overall packing capacities.
While there is new packer capacity on the horizon, it can’t come quickly enough to counter the impacts of coronavirus illness among slaughter plant workers.
Proposed new packing facilities and expansions won’t be online until 2024 or 2025 and even those are contingent on labor, which is in short supply. A new plant in Sioux Falls, South Dakota will need 1,100 workers to operate.
The market is also affected by shortages of truckers, which impacts the flow of animals to packing plants. That shortage of trucking capacity is especially true for slaughter hogs and feeder pigs and is contributing to tighter margins for hog producers, she said.
However, fat cattle prices in the first quarter of 2022 should be up 18.2 percent over last year; for the second quarter Boetel predicts fat cattle prices 13.5 percent higher than last year. Quarter three and four should see smaller, but still positive gains at +4 percent and +1.1 percent over 2021.
Higher cattle prices
Boetel said producers of fat cattle should see significantly higher prices for their finished animals in 2022 and cattle profit margins should increase. Processors will see declining margins and cow/calf producers will gain leverage in the markets this year.
There is a herd cycle for beef, and it is now in a contraction phase, which began in 2019. Boetel said drought conditions in many regions have speeded up some of that contraction.
In 2021 beef production was up 2.7 percent and beef imports increased (+4.4 percent). The United States also increased its beef exports by 14.5 percent.
For 2022, beef production is expected to be down 2.6 percent with decreasing fed cattle slaughter, decreasing carcass weight, decreasing beef imports and decreased beef exports.
The contraction in the beef complex is evident in some numbers -- beef cow inventory on January 2021 stood at 31.2 million head. That was down 181,000 beef cows from year-earlier levels, which was 533,100 less than 2019. Boetel said the 2022 inventory is likely to be around 30.7 million head. That is down 450,000 from year-earlier numbers and down 983,000 from 2019.
Total cattle numbers are also affected by heifer slaughter, which was up 4.2 percent in 2021. Heifer placements in feedlots were 38.8 percent of total cattle on feed last year and drought conditions likely accelerated that placement as pastures were too parched to retain young heifers as future beef cows.
“The cow herd contraction is not equal across the United States,” she said. In 2022 we will continue to see cow culling and the potential decrease of an additional 300,000 head in the beef cattle herd.
Contraction was also evident in the 2020 calf crop, which was 1.3 percent lower – down 456,000 head – compared to the previous year. And that number is 1.177 million fewer calves than in 2018.
The 2021 calf crop was also down – 200,000 head. That figure puts the U.S. calf crop down 1.38 million calves compared to what it was in 2018.
Feeder cattle are likely to be down 250,000 head this year and those conditions will be supportive of prices to cow/calf producers. They will also emphasize the importance of Holstein steers to the beef industry as they are a consistent product. With the continued contraction on the beef side, a larger percentage of those Holsteins will be providing beef to consumers.
Boetel commented that with dairy farmers continuing to use beef semen on dairy cows and heifers, the impact of those resulting Angus-cross animals will increase in significance at a growing rate. “That’s a growing part of the beef industry,” she said.
Some contractors have made agreements with large dairy farms that are using beef on dairy and those contractors are feeding those animals out and marketing them. She said its unknown to what extent those beef crossbred cattle will replace the traditional beef breed calves.
Beef cattle numbers were at their highest point in this beef cycle in 2014, she said. The industry is now at the smallest beef herd size in this most recent cycle.
There is also a decline in other types of protein production. Last year was the fifth consecutive year of declining turkey production, which was down 2.7 percent in 2021. But broiler production increased 0.7 percent in 2021. That marked the tenth straight year of increases.
The expectation is that there will be 1.9 percent more broiler production in 2022. If that’s borne out, it will be the eleventh consecutive year of increased broiler production. Exports of chicken were up 3 percent in 2021 and are expected to be up 2 percent in 2022. Boetel said per-capita consumption of chicken in 2021 was down 0.5 pounds, but is projected to be up 2 pounds in 2022 (+2.1 percent).
In the pork complex, the nation’s herd was culled significantly in 2020. Due to Covid shutdowns in packing plants, large numbers of animals were euthanized and in 2021 there were still serious impacts of that.
The size of the nation’s hog herd in 2021 was down 2.2 percent from 2020.
“We have a smaller herd going into 2022 and it will be down for this year. There will be less pork for people to consume,” she said.
Boetel commented that the hog industry is going to be affected by Proposition 12, which passed in California and took effect on January 1. California accounts for 13 percent of U.S. pork production. Prop 12 requires breeding pigs to have 24 square feet of pen space per pig, which is far more than most farrowing crates now provide. It also would mean that most other hog-rearing pens don’t meet that requirement.
“This is a big issue for pork producers to meet this.”
There are numerous lawsuits challenging the requirements and processors can still sell cold-storage pork that was harvested before January 1. But the requirement will have an impact on the pork industry, she said.
“They won’t be able to sell any uncooked pork if they don’t meet this requirement.”


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Beyond Meat is starting to hit supermarket shelves in China after it first entered the country in April by supplying Starbucks’ plant-based menu. Within weeks, it had also forayed into select KFC, Taco Bell and Pizza Hut outlets — all under the Yum China empire.
China, the world’s biggest market for meat consumption, has seen a growing demand for plant-based protein. Euromonitor predicted that the country’s “free from meat” market, including plant-based meat substitutes, would be worth almost $12 billion by 2023, up from just under $10 billion in 2018.
The Nasdaq-listed food giant is now bringing its signature Beyond Burgers into Freshippo (“Hema” in Chinese), Alibaba’s supermarket chain, whose 30-minute delivery service recorded a spike in orders during the pandemic as people avoided in-person shopping.
The tie-up will potentially promote the animal-free burgers to customers of Freshippo’s more than 200 stores across China’s Tier 1 and Tier 2 cities. They will first be available in 50 stores in Shanghai and arrive in more locations in September.
“We know that retail will be a critical part of our success in China, and we’re pleased to mark this early milestone within a few months of our market entry,” Ethan Brown, founder and chief executive officer of Beyond Meat, said in a statement.
Plant-based meat has a long history in China, serving the country’s Buddhist communities before the diet emerged as a broader urban lifestyle in more recent times. Amid health concerns, the Chinese government told citizens to cut back on meat consumption in 2016. The middle-class urban dwellers have also been embracing fake meat products as they respond to climate change.
“Regardless of international or local brands, Chinese consumers are now only seeing the first generation of plant-based offerings. Purchases today are mostly limited to forward-thinking experimenters,” Matilda Ho, founder and managing director of Bits x Bites, a venture capital firm targeting the Chinese food tech industry, told TechCrunch. “The good news is China’s per capita consumption of plant-based protein is amongst the highest in the world.”
“For these offerings to scale to mass consumers or attract repeat purchases from early adopters, there is tremendous opportunity to improve on the mouthfeel, flavor and how these products fit into the Chinese palate. To appeal to health-conscious flexitarians or vegetarians, there is also plenty of room to improve the nutritional profile in comparison to the conventional tofu or Buddhist mimic meat,” Ho added.
The fake meat market is already rife with competition. Domestic incumbent Qishan Foods has been around since 1993. Hong Kong’s OmniPork and Alpha Foods were quick to capture the new appetite across the border. Nascent startup Zhenmeat is actively seeking funding and touting its understanding of the “Chinese taste.”
Meanwhile, Beyond Meat’s rival back home, Impossible Foods, may be having a harder time cracking the market, as its genetically modified soy ingredient could cause concerns among health-conscious Chinese.

domain: news


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Wharton San Francisco alumna Rel Lavizzo-Mourey WG’15 launched her luxury outerwear company called Silver Lining Bespoke during her second year in the EMBA program. We recently caught up with Rel and asked her to tell us about her experiences starting a company in school and how Wharton has helped her since graduation. Here is what she said:
Cookie sandwich concept first baked up in Penn’s Harnwell College House in 2014, founded by Wharton senior Roopa Shankar and College seniors Alina Wong and Rachel Stewart, and now an Entrepreneurs’ Organization Global Student Entrepreneur Awards national finalist. Their spring menu features snickerdoodles with chocolate cookie dough filling, semisweet chocolate drizzle and crushed toffee filling, and that’s just their “classic.” You can also try the “cutie pie,” the “nut job” or the “n003” cookies in stores around the Philly area. Or order online.


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Apple designs and builds its MacBooks to get the best performance possible out of the OS X operating system. But according to one owner, Apple's new MacBook runs Microsoft's Windows 10 better than its native OS.
Showing results 1 to 20 of 3,931
This is why we can't have nice things: Malicious Chrome extensions are getting through the loophole of Google's Chrome Developer channel.
Privacy-guarding, peer-to-peer Bleep now available for iOS, Android, Mac, and Windows.
This handy app already supported OS X computers and now lets you use an iPad as a lag-free external display for your Windows PC.
A step-by-step guide to installing Windows 10 into VirtualBox.
Having bought Wyse back in 2012, Dell is combining its virtualization technology and server hardware for a new computing appliance, making it easy to run Windows on Chrome OS.
This marks the first time Pinterest is opening up API access for development of consumer apps tied to the digital scrapbooking phenomenon.
Web APIs are proliferating across enterprises like wild weeds -- time to get a handle on how APIs are designed, distributed and renewed
Facebook is giving developers until April 30 to update their apps to use the new login and Graph API the company introduced in April last year, before apps are updated automatically.
OS X may have a better security reputation than Windows, but it's far from perfect.
The bug should've been squashed in the latest update of OS X 10.10.3, but researchers say it persists. Every Mac is at risk from this "backdoor" bug.
Music production downloads as a metaphor for web APIs.
The United States government has given the public access to its massive analytics database, and the results are fascinating. What share does the Mac really have? Is Windows 8.1 a hit or a miss? Who's winning the browser wars? I've dug deep to get the answers.
The latest update shores up browser defense against malware, phishing and unwanted software.
A very handy tool that was once only available to Windows users finally comes to OS X.
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Broadcom is especially touting OpenNSL to networking OEMs, operators and independent software vendors.
Microsoft has released the first public preview of Office 2016 for Mac, its updated Office suite for Mac OS 10.10 users, which is due out this summer.
Today's preview release of new Office apps for the Mac brings much of the familiar Office for Windows interface to Mac users. It's a long-overdue update to the cluttered Office for Mac interface. Here's what you'll find.
For years, Oracle has tormented Windows users by bundling adware with its Java installer for Windows PCs. Now Oracle has begun including the same adware as part of a default installation of Java for the Mac, using the same deceptive techniques.
The best of ZDNet, delivered
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After the first half of CARAVAN SALON DÜSSELDORF (25 August to 2 September 2018) the organiser and exhibitors are more than satisfied and proud to announce new record figures: “Until Wednesday included we registered more than 145,000 visitors, 12% more than at the same point in time last year. This means we are clearly ahead of forecasts and are looking to the coming days with optimism,” explained Stefan Koschke, Director of CARAVAN SALON DÜSSELDORF. The new hall structure has proven its worth, he added, and the growing interest taken by young families with children in caravanning as a form of holiday-making is also striking. The Caravan Center, the campsite on trade fair parking lot P1, has again proved very popular. Despite minor waiting times during departure the traffic concept for the concurrent national German football league match of Fortuna Düsseldorf on Saturday worked fine, he delighted. For the period a total of over 230,000 visitors are expected at the CARAVAN SALON.
A survey conducted by the “Caravaning Industrie Verbandes e.V. – CIVD” (Caravanning Industry Association) among its exhibiting members shows that the industry is very satisfied with the results obtained at the trade fair so far. Over 50% of the caravan manufacturers state that they have sold more vehicles than over the same period at CARAVAN SALON 2017 while the other half of the exhibitors see the deals concluded so far at the same high previous year’s levels.
Just as outstanding is the interim review of motorhome manufacturers. Almost one third of the exhibitors kicked off the CARAVAN SALON 2018 with strongly rising and/or rising sales, the other manufacturers achieved the high levels posted in 2017.
“The attendance is fantastic and we are delighted with the extraordinarily interested and well informed trade fair visitors. With again higher sales in all vehicles segments this year’s CARAVAN SALON follows on from the previous year’s fair and from the success year 2018, says Daniel Onggowinarso, General Manager of Caravaning Industrie Verband (CIVD). Over the first seven months of the year 54,071 new RVs were registered, a strong 11.8% increase and the best result obtained for this period ever.
CARAVAN SALON DÜSSELDORF is still open until Sunday, 2 September, daily from 10.00am to 6.00pm.


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More than half the world’s refugees live in urban areas. Here’s what that means for cities.
NAIROBI, Kenya — “Karibu,” Astar says, using one of Kenya’s official languages, Swahili, to welcome shoppers into her market stall. As customers pop in to look at the dress shirts and trousers on display, the 29-year-old shopkeeper quickly gets down to business. She bargains over prices and makes some sales, enough to bring home about US$70 per month.
#réfugiés #asile #migrations #urban_refugees #Kenya #Nairobi


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Just a week into the Chinese "Year of the Goat," chefs in New York are sharpening their knives and diners are preparing to drool over bowls of braised goat shoulder tortellini in a smoked broth and plates of rosemary-goat cheese ice cream.
The homage dinner menu to the bleating ruminant at Craft in New York on Friday night is just the tip of an emerging culinary craze for goat meat - an alternative, and normally budget-friendly, option to beef.
Continue Reading Below
Menus using goat meat are leaping beyond ethnic restaurants to high-end outlets, as restaurateurs and retailers hunt for alternatives to beef - an expensive option, even though wholesale prices are off last summer's record highs.
"There are clear price advantages to putting goat on the menu, over beef, because you don't have to charge an arm and a leg for it," said Taylor Naples, chef de cuisine at Craft in New York. Diners on Friday, however, will be forking out over $125 per person for the four-course, goat-themed meal.
Goat's appeal is equal parts cultural tradition and rural economics. The number of U.S. residents born in the Middle East jumped to 1.6 million in 2012, up 47 percent from a decade earlier, according to Pew Research Center. Population increases were also seen from other communities with traditional goat cuisine: South America (up 42.3 percent), Central America (56.3 percent) and the Caribbean (31.4 percent).
Dan Romanoff, executive vice president of meat distributor Nebraskaland, said demand for goat, particularly in the Muslim community, boosted sales from $24 million in 2013 to more than $30 million last year.
Imports of goat meat jumped to 19.6 million metric tonnes in 2014, double a decade earlier, according to agriculture department data, helped also by the strong dollar.
"Right now, I can buy goat meat for $2.75 a pound. Beef is $3.50 or more," said Romanoff, who is also a director of Hunts Point Cooperative Market, a leading North American food distribution center. "Which are you going to choose?"
As demand grows, domestic supplies are tightening and prices are hoofing up.
In Texas, the leading meat goats producer, the herd size shrank as drought prompted ranchers to send animals to slaughter in the past few years, said Bob Buchholz, president of the Texas Sheep & Goat Raisers Association.
Now, said Buchholz, some farmers are sheepishly turning to a less labor-intensive protein option: lamb.
(Reporting By P.J. Huffstutter. Editing by Jo Winterbottom; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)


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The next 12 months represent the biggest, most exciting opportunity retailer marketers have ever had. This unprecedented window is an opportunity to innovate like never before.
- What Peloton’s treadmill safety concerns could mean for the brand’s momentum
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- Make your ads more valuable by optimizing your landing pages
- Watch the newest commercials on TV from Slack, Silk, Bounty and more
- Opinion: The future of work includes burnout—unless agencies invest in their people


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June 1, 2023
US Department of Labor finds Dollar General blocked emergency exits, allowed other safety hazards at 4 southern Pennsylvania stores
Nationwide discounter faces $227K in additional penalties, more than $21M since 2017
HARRISBURG, PA – Federal workplace safety inspectors found hazardous conditions at four southern Pennsylvania stores owned and operated by Dollar General Corp. and Dolgencorp LLC like those identified at the company’s locations in more than 240 inspections across the nation since 2017. These inspections have led to more than $21 million in proposed penalties for the national discount retailer.
Responding to a complaint, the U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration opened inspections at stores in Adams, Franklin and Dauphin counties. Inspectors found Dollar General exposed employees to blocked exit routes and electrical panels, and overall poor housekeeping practices.
OSHA issued citations for two repeat and two serious violations and one other-than-serious safety violation with $227,898 in newly proposed penalties. The agency inspected stores at 4910 Fairfield Road in Fairfield, 5736 Carlisle Pike in New Oxford, 16300 Path Valley Road in Spring Run and 881 Peters Mountain Road in Dauphin.
"OSHA found federal safety regulations ignored and Dollar General’s employees exposed to potentially dangerous conditions that are preventable," said OSHA Area Director Kevin Chambers in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. "These are serious concerns that, left uncorrected, could lead to disaster for employees and others in an emergency."
In October 2022, OSHA added Dollar General Corp. and Dolgencorp LLC to its Severe Violator Enforcement Program.
Based in Goodlettsville, Tennessee, Dollar General Corp. and Dolgencorp LLC operate about 18,000 stores and 17 distribution centers in 47 states and employ more than 150,000 workers.
Dollar General has 15 business days from receipt of its citations and penalties to comply, request an informal conference with OSHA's area director, or contest the findings before the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission.
Release Number: 23-1091-PHI


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Dish Makes Competitive Bid for Clearwire
Jan 8, 2013, 7:12 PM by Eric M. Zeman
Dish Network today complicated Sprint's plans to buy out Clearwire by making a bid of its own. Specifically, Dish made a bid of $3.30 per share, which is 10% more than the $2.97 per share offered by Sprint. Dish said it looks forward to working with Clearwire to make the transaction work. Sprint issued a response, saying, "Sprint believes its agreement to acquire Clearwire, which offers Clearwire shareholders certain and attractive value, is superior to the highly conditional Dish proposal. The Dish proposal would require Sprint to voluntarily waive rights that it holds as a stockholder of Clearwire and that it possesses through various vendor and customer contracts that significantly predate Sprint’s proposed acquisition of the remainder of Clearwire. Sprint does not intend to waive any of its rights and looks forward to closing the transaction with Clearwire and helping consumers across the country realize the benefits of this combination." SoftBank, which is in the process of acquiring a 70% stake in Sprint, forbade Sprint from paying more than $2.97 per share for Clearwire — a price that some Clearwire investors feel is too low. Sprint owns more than 50% of Clearwire.
Motorola has a new $500 phone and it's kind of a big deal. While Motorola has been successful with more affordable phones lately, not since 2017 have all of the big three US carriers offered a Motorola phone over $400.
Jan 8, 2021
Motorola today unveiled a full lineup of four new affordable phones, including three g-series models ranging from $169 – $299 and one 5G model for $399. All four feature large batteries (4,000 – 5,000 mAh) and large displays (6.5 – 6.8 inches).
Mar 31, 2021
Utah has launched a pilot program for mobile driver's licenses (mDL) based on the international mDL standard. The pilot will expand to 10,000 participants this year, including the broader public starting June 1.
Jan 4, 2021
Venmo has launched a new feature of its money-moving app that lets users deposit checks directly into their Venmo accounts, bypassing their usual bank. The service incurs a 1% fee, although Venmo is temporarily waiving that fee for government stimulus checks.
Jun 6, 2022
Apple today announced iOS 16, the next version of its core software for iPhones. The new OS features a major revamp of the Lock Screen with new personalization, including font & color options, and widgets that are similar to complications on the Apple Watch.
This got a lot more complicated
It's a match made in heaven....
Run off with Dish and live in a double-wide, or go with Sprint and actually make something of your life. Hard call.
Knowing Clear, they're going to go to Dish - mostly because Clear is managed by a bunch of IDIOTS. Clear is NOTHING but a burden to Sprint, and this has been going on for years.
The least those cash funnel morons could do is give their spectrum to Sprint and allow their decision making abilities to be relieved. Sprint is doing them a favor by allowing them to step down and stop making fools of themselves.


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One in five (19%) UK holidaymakers are determined to holiday as soon as possible in the UK or abroad, with 6% claiming that they don’t mind where they stay, and 6% planning a blow-out holiday as soon as they can (rising to 11% of under 34s).
The Opinium survey of 2000 UK holidaymakers, on behalf of iCarhireinsurance, a leading provider of car hire excess insurance, reveals that almost a third (31%) will only travel to places where they feel their health will be safe, with older age groups much more likely to say this (38% of over 55s). A third (33%) of holidaymakers think it is too risky to travel abroad this year, 15% won’t travel until there is a vaccine and 7% say their finances have been hit and they can’t afford to holiday this year.
A third (33%) of UK holidaymakers’ plans had been cancelled this year due to the pandemic. Almost one in seven (14%) say that the pandemic has changed the way they will travel forever. A third (33%) plan to holiday more in the UK in the future, rising to 40% of over 55s, and almost a fifth (18%) of holidaymakers aim to fly less.
In terms of holiday accommodation, one in ten (10%) are now wary of staying in all-inclusive resorts, and 11% will choose self-catering over hotels in the future.
Ernesto Suarez, founder and CEO of iCarhireinsurance said: “The pandemic has changed the way we travel, holiday and relax for the foreseeable future, yet it’s clear that the appetite for a holiday is still strong for most British holidaymakers. Whether your holiday plans are in the UK or abroad, hiring a car is a great way to explore the local area, without having to worry about social distancing. However, don’t forget to organise your car hire excess insurance in advance.”
Other holiday trends that can be witnessed in today’s times can be found here


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On the heels of Brookfield (BN) Office Properties’ announcement that it was setting up two new Electric Vehicle charging stations inside One World Financial Center, The Commercial Observer checked in with Laura Longsworth, the company’s national parking czar, on its so-called Green Garage initiative.
“Brookfield has this commitment to sustainability,” said Ms. Longsworth, vice president of national parking operations, from her office in Denver, Colorado.
“We tried to think of ways to expand that program through our properties, and garages seemed like a logical choice,” she added.
Yesterday, the company announced it would be setting up the new EV charging stations as part of its $250 million refurbishment plan for the World Financial Center, which includes implementing new environmentally-friendly practices and adding a state-of-the-art dining area and gourmet market to the complex.
Brookfield’s “Green Garage Program” will also add sustainable features to the property’s parking garage, including bike racks, LED light fixtures, and eco-friendly cleaning products for its janitorial staff.
This green initiative is supported by Brookfield’s partnership with national nonprofit organization the Green Parking Council, and the garage will be a registered GPC Demonstrator Site.
The eventual goal is to get an electrical vehicle charging station in every city where Brookfield has a property “to get ahead of the curve, because not many other companies are doing it,” said Ms. Longsworth.
The machines themselves can be costly, ranging in price from $8,000 to $10,000. To help defray the cost, Brookfield has struck a deal with Juice Bar, a maker of EV charging stations that were designed by BMW Group DesignworksUSA. Brookfield sold advertising space on the machine in exchange for the machines themselves, said Ms. Longsworth.
“Our philosophy has been ‘charge cars, not people,’” said Ms. Longsworth. “We want to offer this as a tenant amenity. We want to be sure that we are head of the changes in the industry.”
The “Green Garage” program includes using recycled paper for tickets and receipts, offering “waterless car washes” (“they use chemicals and elbow grease so that it does not use a lot of water and don’t have to worry about water run-off,” she said), and recycling.
Brookfield has up to 14 EV charging stations in full usage in its properties throughout the Los Angeles area, the most it has in any city. It has 6 EV charging stations in Houston.
While the “Green Garages” has earned them recognition from local BOMA (Building Owners and Managers Association) Foundations, the initiative has yet to make a dent in upgrading the LEED Certifications for the buildings they do have stations in.
“It’s not easy to get that part of the property up for LEED certification,” said Ms. Longsworth. Brookfield’s approach has been to “set up our own standards for green garages, maybe LEED can fall into line,” she said.


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No. 2 Story in 2015
Perhaps of all the pickup OEMs at SEMA this year, Chevrolet had the strongest showing.
The Kid Rock-designed, smokestack-toting Silverado 3500 dually concept drew big crowds, as did the Realtree Bone Collector 1500, designed with Michael Waddell.
And for both military veterans and military wannabes, Chevy rolled out a Silverado Special Ops concept truck at the show. The Special Ops features the 2016 Sivlerado’s new muscular front end and adds LED lighting to the trims along with a boldly sculpted hood.
Perhaps the most interesting aspect of this truck was the blue, three tone camo paint scheme designers used. The color and pattern was based on a naval camouflage design developed more than 100 years ago to disguise ships.
For illuminating your “nighttime ops” the truck has high intensity, off-road LEDs on the support bar as well as embedded in the grill.
The Spec Ops Silverado runs on a 5.3 liter EcoTech engine with 355 horsepower. A company spokesman said if fans respond well, you might see the Spec Ops model in showrooms in the near future.


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The hardest part of going vegan is living in a veganphobic society. It’s neither the taste nor our health but the people who laugh at us and humiliate us. Initially, I never even wanted to step outside my house because people questioned me a lot and at that time, I didn’t have the answer to all their questions.
What’s the hardest thing about being vegan?
Veganism has boomed over the last few years, and more people are ditching meat and dairy for health or environmental reasons. But the transition isn’t always easy. There are more vegan substitutes than ever before. … A new survey has found that eggs are the hardest thing for vegans to say goodbye to.
Why is being vegan so hard?
For the food part, sometimes it’s hard because you either live in a small town or some place with a culturally heavy meat-based diet—in those cases there are probably very few options to buy vegan-friendly products, and all of them are going to be expensive as hell, given that not many people are buying them.
Is going vegan difficult?
You’ll probably find going vegan a lot easier than expected, but if you do have a bad day or feel this whole vegan thing is too much like hard work – take a deep breath and briefly reflect on your choices.
What problems do vegans have?
There is a need for more studies on the relation between vegan diets and risk of cancer, diabetes, and osteoporosis. Vitamin B-12 deficiency is a potential problem for vegans, so that the use of vitamin B-12–fortified foods or supplements are essential.
What food do vegans miss most?
Cheese on toast, chocolate brownies and buttery mashed potatoes are among the foods non-dairy eaters miss most, according to a study. Cheesecake and lasagne were also among the bites that 500 adults polled said they longed for. Others missed crumpets, spaghetti carbonara and banoffee pie.
Is Beyonce still vegan?
Both Beyoncé and Jay-Z shared their vegan pledges to inspire fans; Beyoncé now adheres to Meatless Mondays and vegan breakfasts, and Jay-Z pledged to eat two vegan meals a day.
What are the benefits of being vegan?
Research has shown that a vegan diet can help do the following:
- Promote weight loss.
- Reduce your risk of heart disease by lowering cholesterol levels.
- Lower your chances of getting certain types of cancer, such as colon cancer.
- Manage diabetes by lowering A1C levels.
Does changing to vegan diet side effects?
7 dangerous side effects of Vegan diet
- 01/8What is a Vegan diet? …
- 02/8Low energy & weight problems. …
- 03/8Leaky gut issues. …
- 04/8Hormones disruptions. …
- 05/8Lack of iron. …
- 06/8Risk of vitamin B12 deficiency. …
- 07/8Risk of depression. …
- 08/8Risk of developing an eating disorder.
Do vegans poop more?
According to Lee, those who adhere to a plant-based diet rich in whole grains, vegetables, and fruits typically pass well-formed poop more frequently. Plant-based foods are rich in fiber whilst meat and dairy products contain none. Fiber keeps the intestinal system working efficiently, according to Everyday Health.
Is it worth being a vegan?
They found that people who eat vegan and vegetarian diets have a lower risk of heart disease, but a higher risk of stroke, possibly partly due to a lack of B12. The researchers found that those who didn’t eat meat had 10 fewer cases of heart disease and three more strokes per 1,000 people compared with the meat-eaters.
What happens to your body when you go vegan?
But research has also suggested that going vegan can help overweight people reduce body fat and shed pounds — even if they eat the same number of calories as meat-eaters. In one study, participants on a vegan diet lost a significant amount of weight compared to those who stuck with their non-vegan eating habits.


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Newly released financials are pointing to some stabilisation in western European spirits markets. Scotch and cognac companies are expected to be the most affected by any additional disruptions caused by Russian sanctions, but the Russian government has made it clear that it has other tools at its disposal to impact trade with its adversaries. Foreign spirits suppliers from the US and the EU have faced increased scrutiny from the Russian government under the guise of consumer safety violations.
Consumer sentiment towards high-end spirits remains weak, affecting earnings for both foreign and domestic suppliers. Spirits companies are looking to develop alternative channels and alternative products to help revive sales, highlighting the growing importance of diversification. Foreign suppliers will be unlikely to see any improvement before late Q1 2015.
The US spirits market remains generally positive, and the prospects for continued economic growth should support ongoing growth in spirits volumes. Whiskey is expected to benefit from premiumisation and vodka is likely to continue to drive volume growth. Conditions remain ripe for continued US wholesaler consolidation.
Production of cachaça accelerated as inventories declined during a busy World Cup period. However the Brazilian economy continues to face headwinds as industrial production numbers continue to disappoint and overall economic activity saw contraction during the first two quarters of 2014.
For more information please contact the report’s authors:
Stephen Rannekleiv: Stephen.Rannekleiv@rabobank.com +1 718 755 9312
Elena Saputo: Elena.Saputo@rabobank.com +31 30 71 22375
For other information, please contact Rabobank press office:
firstname.lastname@example.org+31 30 21 66918
For your social media ready version of this press release:
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You may not see it on television outside of CNBC, but manufacturers are pushing production of key medical equipment to the maximum.
3M is ramping up hiring, hosting job fairs and making offers on the spot. In Aberdeen, South Dakota, at one of its largest manufacturing facilities. 3M has added robots to its assembly line all in an effort to meet the surge in demand for its face masks.
Andy Rehder, 3M plant manager, said “we immediately ramped up production in this facility. We have capacity to do that and we did that immediately, really from a more standard 5-day-a-week to a more a 7-day week with additional equipment we’ve been able to bring in and turn on.”
For those wondering if U.S. factories were manufacturing the face masks and then sending them abroad . . .
3M’s manufacturing model emphasizes local for local, which means the majority of our products made in China are sold in China, for example. We continue to manufacture personal protective equipment in multiple areas around the world, including in the United States.
While 3M manufactures millions of respirators per month at production facilities in the United States and China, as well as in Latin America, Europe and Asia, we expect demand for respirators and other supplies to outpace supply for the foreseeable future.
For those concerned about price-gouging, the company states, “while we have not changed the prices we charge for 3M respirators as a result of the coronavirus outbreak, we cannot control the prices other dealers or retailers charge.”
Firms that make the machines said they are ramping up for coming needs. An official from General Electric told ABC News the company is “taking steps to maximize our manufacturing capability and output while ensuring our plants can continue safe operations.”
Officials at another manufacturer, Drägerwerk AG & Co., told ABC News they just received an order for 10,000 ventilators from the German government. “The delivery of the order will stretch across the entire year and requires a substantial increase of the production capacity,” a spokesperson said.
A spokesperson for the San Diego-based firm ResMed said they are currently filling a higher-than normal number of orders from China and South Korea. “ResMed is confident it can meet current global demands,” the official said.
Bob Hamilton, the chief executive of the Reno-based Hamilton Medical Inc., told ABC News that his team is fielding calls from hospitals around the world and doing its best to meet the demand. Hospitals are saying “we’ll take them all,” Hamilton said.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson spoke to more than 60 manufacturing businesses and organizations to ask them to help step up the production of “vital medical equipment” such as ventilators for the National Health Service, a spokeswoman for his Downing Street office said.
As for that claim that the U.S. government wanted to get first dibs on a German manufacturer’s potential cure . . .
CureVac on Tuesday sought to play down any U.S. move.
“There was and is no offer from the U.S. neither with regard to taking over the company nor to have manufacturing slots reserved exclusively,” CureVac’s acting Chief Executive Franz-Werner Haas told journalists in a conference call, adding that its scientists had also not been lured to relocate.


text: Microsoft is in damage control after admitting how much data Windows 10 actually takes. The admission has sickened privacy groups fears and confirmed the rumours of how bad Windows 10 actually is. Microsoft intend to make the situation worse in the soon to be released, the Creators Update, will report all details of a windows machine to Microsoft down to the hardware serial numbers and colour of the machine. This is the type of information advertisers have been clawing to get for years. No word at time this on how much Microsoft would sell this data for.


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"PLANS" content on TweakTown - Page 1
We found 8 items for the tag: PLANS
Man stopped by TSA before boarding flight with weird gun-shaped object
A man has been stopped before getting on a plane with a weird gun-shaped object.
You want to build an amazing project PC but where do you start?
Modder Ilija Dakic shows you one great way to start your epic PC mod project with sketches, real life testing and further analysis.
The British army has employed a whole batallion of Facebook Warriors
The British Army has just created a new 1,500-strong, 77th battalion - described as "Facebook Warriors"
Nintendo WiiU launch line up confirms 23 titles
The WiiU will see 23 games available for purchase on launch day, November 18.
Apple has filed their plans for a 500,000 square-foot Oregon datacenter
Apple files plans for Oregon-based datacenter, could be 500,000 square-foot.
Apple will explain how it will use its $100 billion in cash tomorrow
Tomorrow is the day Apple explain what they're going to do with their cash reserves of $100 billion.
Optus' Apple iPhone 4 plans unveiled
With not surprisingly larger data allowance than Telstra.


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Boxing legend Héctor “Macho” Camacho, has, to this day, a fan following all over the world. His son Hector Camacho Jr., also a prize fighter, has just launched Macho Time Cannabis, a cannabis brand in California that honors his father’s memory and pays tribute to his iconic flamboyance as a boxer in the ring.
Born in Puerto Rico and raised in Spanish Harlem, New York, Macho Camacho was a man of the people. His career as a boxer was storied but filled with wins, and he leveraged his success to become a television icon.
Referring to his nickname Macho, his famous motto was, “It’s Macho Time!” For his son Camacho Jr., Macho Time might as well be 4:20, aka the time to light a joint.
A boxer in his own right, Camacho Jr. dropped Macho Time Cannabis late last year and it has already been a success.
The company came about when a longtime friend and Sacramento boxing ring owner Bobby Sanchez approached Camacho about going into the weed business.
Being a lifelong pot smoker, Camacho was interested, but torn.
“I’m like bro, I would love to but I’m a fighter right now, I’m a role model for these kids,” he says.
“I gave it thought and said, you know what, man? Maybe we can educate people about the benefits of cannabis, and how it can help the fighters,” Camacho says. With that, he decided to go all in and create Macho Time Cannabis.
Camacho has seen the benefits of weed for himself as a fighter and as an artist, and he wants others in the boxing community to get better informed about the plant’s benefits.
“We want to put the best product out there. This isn’t about money for us, it’s about educating.”
Macho Time Cannabis’s first strain drop was the Sativa strain Cherry Lemonada. The team worked with Sacramento’s Delta Boyz to source and distribute the flower.
Camacho personally sampled strains to find the best one to launch with. He went with Cherry Lemonada because of its taste and effect.
“I like to get up in the morning and smoke my weed, smoke my sativa. I need that energy, that creativity. I start writing, I start painting, I do children’s books,” Camacho says.
“The taste is awesome. And it gives me the energy that I’m looking for.”
Camacho says that growing up around family members smoking weed convinced him that it wasn’t a “drug” in the negative sense, despite the stigma.
“My grandmother was a big smoker, my father was a smoker. My aunts, my uncles. That’s what it was in the house, it wasn’t drinking it was smoking,” Camacho says, of growing up in Harlem.
“That’s why I became a smoker. I never saw nobody overdose, never saw nobody act crazy, you know? Everybody was happy when they would smoke, dancing. It was a good feeling.”
Camacho Jr. has been smoking, he says, since he was a kid. His first memory of smoking was of his father getting him high and taking him toy shopping.
“You want a He-Man toy? Ok, take a shotgun,” Camacho Jr. shares, quoting his father. “I didn’t know what a shotgun was. He blew it in my mouth, I was like 8 years old. I was high as a motherfucker, I remember going to the toy store and seeing the He-Man castle and he bought it for me. I started smoking at age 8.”
Camacho found that smoking didn’t get in the way of his success as a boxer, and actually helped with the aches, pains, sleeplessness, and pre-concussion problems that boxers deal with.
Still, stigma permeates the topic of weed in both the Latino and boxing communities. But, Macho Time Cannabis cofounder Sanchez says this is changing, which he can see by the positive response the brand launch has gotten.
“We’ve gotten a lot of good feedback not just from fans but from Puerto Rican community, the Latino community, the boxing community,” Sanchez says.
Sanchez says that despite the stigma, cannabis is popular in the boxing community. “It’s more popular than a lot of people think and a lot of people would know. Not everybody wants to come out and say they use it. You still have those people that think it’s still a bad thing. But all that’s changing,” Sanchez says.
Camacho Jr. says that the tides are turning now that more boxers are openly part of the cannabis industry.
“Fighters are finally crossing over. For us, there’s a stigma, it was associated with drugs. Now we got fighters crossing over. It’s only gonna get bigger,” Camacho Jr. says.
Camacho Jr. is just one of several boxers getting into weed, the most well known being Mike Tyson with his Tyson 2.0 brand. (Incidentally, the first Camacho to drop a strain was actually his brother, Christian, also a fighter. Christian put out a strain called “Macho” a few years ago with the Backpack Boyz.)
The packaging for Macho Time Cannabis features an illustration of Hector Camacho senior after winning a fight. The brand is intended to keep his father’s name alive.
“I did this with two purposes. Of course to educate but also to keep the name Macho Camacho relevant,” Camacho Jr. says.
“Most of the youth are the weed smokers, and the younger generation don’t even remember my father. They don’t know Macho Camacho. But having Macho Camacho on weed packages, they’re buying it, they’ll smoke it, they’ll remember the name.”
He says his father would approve. “We’re just keeping him alive, keeping him relevant. I think he would be proud of me.”
Camacho, Sanchez, and partner Vinny Versace all see the brand growing, first throughout the state and then to the East Coast. They’d like to do edibles, drinkables and topicals, plus more strains with more colorful packaging, matching Camacho senior’s style.
Camacho Jr. sees the cannabis industry as an opportunity for people like himself. He says he wants to help other boxers get involved, to pass the torch on to others.
“It’s rare you see a Latin owner, you know? I want my people to invest, to get involved in this cannabis business. It’s big business. Before they close up on us.”
For Sanchez, the pace of growth has been a welcome surprise. This was only an idea a few years ago, he said.
“I’m still amazed on how far already we are into this. It’s from having a strong team. I want to thank Hector Camacho Jr. & Clay Dustin and my partner Vince because without them this couldn’t have moved. Thanks to the Delta Boyz and Karim Mayfield of Authentic 415 and Shawn of Berners on Haight for their support and efforts to taking this brand to the next level.”


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It would seem that Nine Inch Nail’s experiment with a free album download and paid options is seriously paying off within days of the album being made available. According to Trent Reznor, the $300 limited edition has sold out of its limited 2500 copies. and the album has already made $750,000.
Nine Inch Nails – initial results
05 Wednesday Mar 2008


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DICE will continue to work on fixing Battlefield 4
DICE has stated that they will continue to work on fixing the issues that have been plaguing Battlefield 4 since it launched last October.
They've re-emphasised their commitment to Battlefield 4 after EA announced the Visceral developed Battlefield: Hardline for release later this year.
Troedsson explained in a new blog entry, "I want to be sure you all understand that introducing Hardline in no way means we’re done working on Battlefield 4. Nothing could be further from the truth. The Visceral team is leading the development of Hardline, while the DICE team continues to drive BF4. We are committed to giving you the best BF4 experience possible."
"The games we develop are services," he went on. "We focus on taking care of the games post launch, delivering new content to those of you who want it and always working hard to increase quality of play. We also continue to work hard to keep investing in areas where you tell us you see opportunities for improvements and new features."
"Yes, we’re very excited to partner with Visceral on the development of Battlefield Hardline, but ongoing work to refine and enhance BF4 remains a top priority," Troedsson emphasised.
Battlefield: Hardline is due to be fully unveiled at EA's E3 press briefing on June 9th.
- Report finds that the 100 USD tier of Assassin's Creed: Unity's microtransactions is completely unnecessary
- Final Fantasy Type-0 HD gets a new trailer
- Bungie deconstructs their latest Destiny patch, hints at what is coming next
- DayZ creator Dean Hall could join UK studio Improbable
- Shadow Of Mordor arrives on last-gen consoles
- David Braben apologises for ditching Elite: Dangerous's offline mode, outlines refund criteria
- Microsoft celebrates the 1st birthday of the Xbox One with free access to Sunset Overdrive
- Hacker group leaks account details for thousands of PSN, Origin, Windows Live and 2K Game Studios accounts
- RedLynx promises online multiplayer is coming to Trials Fusion early next year


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India will have one of the largest pavilions at the ensuing Expo2020 at Dubai. The six-month long World Expo is slated to begin on October 1 where over 190 countries are participating and showcasing their unique capabilities in various areas and opportunities for investment.
A technology marvel, India Pavilion will feature an innovative kinetic façade made up of 600 individual colourful blocks. It is developed as a mosaic of rotating panels that will depict different themes as they rotate on their axis. It represents the theme of ‘India on the move’ and is a unique amalgam of the rich heritage and technological advances of the nation.
The entire four-storey structure is divided into two parts. The zones are identified based on 11 primary themes - Climate and Biodiversity, Space, Urban and Rural Development, Tolerance and Inclusivity, Golden Jubilee, Knowledge and Learning, Travel and Connectivity, Global Goals, Health and Wellness, Food Agriculture and Livelihoods and Water.
“India Pavilion at Expo 2020 Dubai will showcase India's march to becoming a USD 5 Trillion economy. India’s exceptional fightback against Covid-19 and the country’s emergence as a global business hub presenting huge opportunities for the world will be the overarching theme of India’s participation at Expo 2020 Dubai,” Subrahmanyam said.
The India pavilion will see participation from a number of Indian states which will be displaying their culture, tradition and tremendous business opportunities along with the top corporate groups from India, and the public sector companies. Large number of prominent government ministers, officials, and celebrities are set to visit India pavilion during the six months of Expo 2020, which will also host a number of cultural events, said Subrahmanyam in a press conference.
Tourism Secretary, Arvind Singh last month had indicated a fortnight-long festivities at the India Pavilion to promote brand ‘Incredible India’ of Indian Tourism at the Expo2020. “For two weeks, the India Pavilion will be promoting tourism exclusively,” he said while participating in a webinar hosted by FICCI recently.


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Venmo is dropping its ridiculous social feature that let you see random people’s transactions
Why was this ever a thing?
Venmo is a great app for sending money to friends, family, and clients. For some reason, the PayPal-owned app also has social features that let you see not only your friends’ transactions but those from strangers, as well.
Now, as part of its app redesign and refreshed UI, Venmo has announced it is removing the social feature that lets you see stranger’s transactions. There will still be a social feed for friends, however. Another part of the update includes more privacy options for users.
The changes make sense. As CNN reports, back in 2018 Venmo settled with the Federal Trade Commission over privacy concerns and it was also recently revealed Joe Biden’s Venmo account was public.
The refreshed Venmo app will be rolling out to users over the next couple of weeks and joins a list of other recent features adding by the company.
These include the ability to sell stuff through your personal account and new crypto functions that allow you to buy and sell certain digital currencies like Bitcoin.
Have any thoughts on this? Let us know down below in the comments or carry the discussion over to our Twitter or Facebook.
- Coinbase users can now buy crypto with their PayPal account
- PayPal will now let you buy anything with cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin
- How to make your Venmo transactions private
- You can now pay and split ride fares in Uber with Venmo


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Welders Supplies Limited, headquartered in Winnipeg, Manitoba has relocated its store in Brandon, Manitoba.
Welders Supplies operated out of their 18th street location for 60 years. Their warehousing and Medigas division operated out of separate locations. All operations are now under one roof on 1st Avenue.
The company has organised an open house on Wednesday the 10th October, 8 AM to 5 PM, which will comprise of a pancake breakfast, lunch and live demos from Hypertherm, Innovair Automation, Lincoln Electric, Miller/ITW, Norton Abrasives and Weldmark Products.
The new address is: Welders Supplies Limited, 1617 1st Street, Brandon, Manitoba, Canada R7A 7X7.
The National Association of Trailer Manufacturers (NATM) is working with Airgas, an NATM associate member, to offer NATM members a discount for the 3 ½ day on-site welder training programme, ‘Unlocking the Hidden Costs of Welding.’
Month on month the gasworld website continues to be the primary portal for information, on a global scale, about our industry - be it through the provision of news and features, or information in the expansive company directory section. Launched in 2004, it is the only independent online news provider and information portal for the global industrial gas community and the larger end-user markets. The website also now incorporates news for gasworld US and Specialty Gas Report.
To find out more about gasworld's advertising opportunities click here.


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The smart home industry is bursting at the seams as we begin the new year. Fueled by strong innovation and adoption, the smart home industry has penetrated 33.2% of US households and is projected to be in 53.9% by 2023 (Statista).
How Some Publishers are Approaching the Smart Home Market
The New York Times (NYT) recently launched several products tailored specifically for smart homes. While conducting research, the NYT established that there are three primary ‘modes’ of consumption. First, the ‘lean back, ambient’ mode, which is generally categorized with podcast and music usage; second, the ‘catch-up’ mode, when a user wants specific, digestible information, quickly; third, the ‘captive’ mode in which the user is less time sensitive and is willing to actively engage in the content.
Applying insights from their research, the NYT created the Daily Flash Briefing, produced for the ‘catch-up’ mode; the briefing offers users a customized three-minute news update. The third mode has higher willingness to engage so the NYT is experimenting with a weekly interactive news quiz related to their flash briefing content. The Daily, their twenty minute news podcast, is being reused to fulfill the needs of mode one users.
The NYT initially released the flash briefings and weekly interactive quizzes on the Amazon Echo (63% net share in the US) and intends to expand their products to the Google Assistant (17% net share) and Apple Homepod (4% net share).
Other publishers are following suit and adapting their content to more accurately fulfill the needs of smart home users. CNN and BBC have also created smart home specific daily news briefings and NPR’s News Now briefing is updated and released hourly to remain relevant and top of mind.
Points of Entry
There are a few routes publishers can take to enter the smart home market, one is by gaining ownership of generic skills, like financial news, the weather, and sports. For example, if Forbes owned the financial news skill, every time Siri was asked ‘what is the top financial news today?’ Forbes would own the response; or if ESPN owned all NBA news, when Alexa was asked, ‘what was the score from last night’s Lakers game?’ ESPN would send the response.
Branded skills are another entrance point for publishers. These skills are linked to specific brands and cannot be transferred, for example, if Alexa was asked to ‘play the latest TED Talk’ or ‘what is the breaking news from CNN?’ no source could initiate a response but TED Conference LLC and CNN. The challenge with branded skills is getting exposure, publishers must market their home pod specific content in hopes that users will request the information from their digital assistants.
Publishers Should Experiment with New Distribution Methods
Omry Aviry, Chief Product Officer at PubPlus, shared his thoughts on the evolving landscape: “Modern publishers must experiment with new distribution methods and find ways to monetize them. People are rarely willing to pay for information, people pay for the delivery method. For example, people don’t buy TV shows, they buy Netflix subscriptions and cable packages, out of convenience.”
With wavering revenue models, publishers may want to consider new opportunities and strategies for their user acquisition efforts. The more diversified the strategy, the better.


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EFG Companies, the innovator behind the award-winning Hyundai Assurance program, announced that Texas Professional Insurance Agents (PIA) has selected EFG as its consumer protection products partner to drive greater revenue for its insurance agents.
With the difficulties of keeping up with increased pricing pressures and expanding competition, Texas PIA recognized the need to support member agents with alternative product offerings to expand their business.
In this effort, the association selected the Simplicity Division of EFG Companies to provide members with three differentiating products:
Simplicity Home Protection which protects customers from the unanticipated costs of home ownership by covering household systems and appliances;
Simplicity Vehicle Protection offers a wide variety of vehicle service contract plans that cover a large majority of the customer’s automotive repairs needs; and,
Simplicity Repair Protection Plans negotiate vehicle repair costs on behalf of the agent’s customer for late model and high mileage vehicles.
"In our mission to provide meaningful support to our member insurance agents, addressing agent profitability has been a major priority in recent years," said Joe Tipton, Executive Director, Texas PIA. "EFG demonstrated the immediate business impact of adding new revenue streams through its Simplicity Protection product line."
As part of the partnership, EFG’s Simplicity Protection Division will provide the technology, training, marketing and sales support to ensure successful implementation. Texas PIA members will also have the security and the ability to profit from the fact that EFG’s products are backed by the company’s national award-winning claims administration.
"There is still opportunity for independent agents to make 2015 a banner year," said Mark Rappaport, President, Simplicity Division of EFG Companies. "Today’s consumers are much more wary of economic turbulence and are aggressively pursuing opportunities to protect their largest investments, their home and vehicle. This provides agents the opportunity to significantly grow their business."


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Business in Savannah in brief
Richmond Hill manufacturer recruiting workers
Caesarstone Technology is looking for more than 80 workers for its new plant set to open next month in Richmond Hill. The company manufactures quartz surfaces for kitchen countertops, bathroom vanities and counters.
Recruiting and interviews will take place from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday, April 28, at the Richmond Hill City Center, 520 Cedar St.
The company is recruiting delivery coordinators, electricians, engineering project managers, feed-system and filter-press operators, mechanics, mold and polish operators, forklift drivers, quality controllers and human resources personnel.
They also need production administrators and workers in finished goods, pigment preparation, raw and supplies materials and work-in-progress.
Applicants must be at least 18 and should bring resumes and be prepared to interview.
For a listing of the jobs and their requirements, go to www.gdol.ga.gov and click on Caesarstone Recruitment under the Spotlights section.
For more information, call 912-356-2773.
Workshop to discuss conflict solutions
The April business workshop hosted by SCORE will focus on using conflict to your advantage.
The presentation will be from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Wednesday in the SCORE conference room, 111 E. Liberty St. Savannah. Jill Cheeks, managing partner of The Meaning Company, will be the guest speaker.
Call SCORE at 912-652-4335 to register for this free workshop.
Cheeks will offer advice on how to stop fearing conflict and turn it into a collaborative solution benefiting you and the other party.
Her business, The Meaning Company, provides creative leadership and organization solutions designed to increase productivity and tailor employee roles to a company's direction.
Cheeks' professional experience includes management consulting with Accenture and the founding of three successful small-business ventures. She is a certified coach and a registered mediator with the Georgia Office of Dispute Resolution.
Parker's opens store in Metter
Savannah-based Parker's convenience stores recently opened a new retail store at the Interstate 16 exit in Metter
"We're had numerous customer requests to open a Parker's at this particular location," said Greg Parker, company president and CEO. "Area residents wanted more competitive pricing at the Metter exit."
The new store - the company's second outlet in Metter - is open 24 hours and has 3,200 square feet of retail space and 10 fueling positions, including diesel.
Parker's operates 37 convenience stores across the region and employs nearly 500 people throughout Georgia and South Carolina. The company completes more than 80,000 transactions daily.


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China is preparing for another shopping festival – 618, taking place on June 18. During that day JD.com pushes plenty of stock, but other companies join in as well.
Meizu is one of the manufacturers that jumped the hype train and discounted six of its latest smartphones, most of them from the 16 series. The most impressive deal is the flagship Meizu 16s for CNY2,699 or about CNY500 less than usual, which translates to $70.
Among the six discounted smartphones we can see the Meizu 16Xs that was recently introduced and planned to launch on June 10. The Chinese company has priced it below the initially announced – all the memory variants and color options of the three-cam smartphone are CNY199 cheaper.
All the devices are on Meizu’s own website and can be purchased in China in all colors. While some of the phones, including the Meizu Note 9, have temporary low prices, other units like the Meizu 16X, Meizu 16, and Meizu 16 Plus are already permanently discounted, making them even a sweeter deal if you are a fan of the brand.
Source (in Chinese)


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Horror fans, rejoice.... and get your hi-vis vests and anti-fog torches ready. It looks like we could be heading back to Silent Hill sooner than we thought.
Yes, that's right, gaming's most infamous town could be returning to modern consoles courtesy of oft-maligned publisher Konami.
For those of you keeping count, it's been a massive seven years since we last saw a game in the series release (no, we're not counting Pachinko machines), and 2012's offering Silent Hill Book of Memories wasn't exactly a high point for the series to end on.
We had a tease of what a modern Silent Hill title could look like thanks to Hideo Kojima's ill-fated Silent Hills demo, PT... but that ended up getting cancelled when Kojima parted ways with Konami.
Now, DuskGolem – an industry insider that also goes by the moniker AestheticGamer – appears to have hinted that we'll be seeing some Silent Hill games materialise in the coming months or years.
"In other news while I’m dropping this stuff, and I think I can talk about this, I’ll mention there is a couple new Silent Hill games in the works," the insider tweeted.
"Konami about two years ago reached out to various developers to pitch ideas for two Silent Hill games, one a soft-reboot of the franchise, the other an episodic TellTale/Until Dawn-style game to go alongside the reboot.
"I don’t know anything more than that though, but I sure do hope Konami’s given it the appropriate budget and found the right developer to make those games succeed."
Big if true! But why should we pay any mind to this information over any other internet rumour?
Well, DuskGolem has a pretty strong track record when it comes to posting rumours – especially about horror games, surprisingly.
It was DuskGolem that initially outed the development of Resident Evil 3, for example, and also suggested that Resident Evil 7's DLC would take a more action-based approached than the main game did.
Further to this information from DuskGolem, RelyOnHorror also independently collaborates the information, stating:
"We can also verify that, while we can’t discuss any details, we’ve also heard from our own independent source that a Silent Hill project is in development."
DuskGolem's information points to a reveal dropping sometime this year, which, to our ears, suggests an E3 reveal may be on the cards.
If the games are in the early stages of development now, don't expect them to launch on PS4 and Xbox One – these will almost certainly be PS5 and Xbox Series X games.
Isn't that an exciting prospect?


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New Jersey's Bane Haunted House Announces 'Bane Escape' Coming Soon
January 31, 2017 By Chelsea T.
Photo by Bane Haunted House, via Facebook
Photo by: Facebook
Bane Haunted House in Livingston, New Jersey has delivered tons of scares to locals, both during the Halloween Season and on special occasions throughout the year. The Haunt recently announced a new addition to their Bane adventures - 'Bane Escape."
Visitors will soon be able to take on Escape Games at Bane, enjoying the thrill of putting your skills to the test with friends to see who can make it out in time. Escape Games immerse participants into a completely different world, as they're forced to work together as a group to solve the puzzle that leads to their escape.
With Escape Games becoming extremely popular in the last year or two, it's no wonder that Bane has joined in on the fun, all while giving their visitors another adventure to take on. Will the rooms be as scary as their haunt? Or maybe just a fun challenge for participants to take on. We will have to wait and see!
Be sure to check back to find out when 'Bane Escape' will be opening and check out their website for updates!


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The Google Pixel 7’s Camera Randomly Cracks, According to Some Users
Google Pixel 7 users have been reporting that their phone’s camera randomly cracks. This is a major issue for the Google Pixel 7, which is one of the most popular models on the market today. The Google Pixel 7 has a great camera and many users rely on it for their everyday photography needs. In this article, we’ll discuss what’s causing the camera to crack and how Google is responding to the issue.
What’s Causing the Camera to Crack?
The cause of the camera cracking is still unknown, but some users have suggested that it could be due to a design flaw in the phone. Others have speculated that the camera may be too fragile and prone to breaking.
It’s possible that the camera was not designed or manufactured properly, leading to the cracks. It’s also possible that the camera is being damaged during everyday use due to the phone being dropped or bumped.
What Are the Signs of a Cracked Camera?
The signs of a cracked camera are usually quite obvious. If your Google Pixel 7’s camera is cracked, you might notice that the image quality is reduced or that the camera won’t focus properly. You might also see black lines or smudges on the photos that you take. In some cases, the camera might even stop working completely.
What Should You Do if Your Camera Cracks?
If your Google Pixel 7’s camera cracks, you should contact Google as soon as possible. Google will likely replace the phone or repair the camera for you.
You should also check to see if your phone is still under warranty. If it is, you might be able to get a free replacement phone or camera repair from Google.
Should You Buy a Google Pixel 7?
The issue of the camera randomly cracking is certainly concerning, but it’s important to note that this is not a widespread issue. Most Google Pixel 7 users have not encountered any problems with their phone’s camera.
That said, if you’re considering buying a Google Pixel 7, it’s important to be aware of the potential issue and to take steps to protect your phone. Make sure to use a case to protect your phone from bumps and drops, and be sure to keep it away from any water or moisture.
How Is Google Responding to the Issue?
Google is aware of the issue and is actively working to address it. The company has released an update that should prevent the camera from randomly cracking and has also offered free repair or replacement of affected phones.
Google has also said that it is investigating the cause of the issue and is working to find a permanent solution. However, it’s unclear when or if the company will be able to fix the problem.
What Are People Saying About the Issue?
The issue of the Google Pixel 7’s camera randomly cracking has been a hot topic on social media and tech forums. Many users are frustrated with the issue, while others are praising Google for its response and offering support to affected users.
Are Other Phones Affected?
At this time, it appears that the issue is limited to the Google Pixel 7. No other models of the phone have been reported to have this issue.
Are There Any Alternatives to the Google Pixel 7?
If you’re concerned about the issue with the Google Pixel 7’s camera, there are several alternatives on the market. Other popular phones include the Samsung Galaxy S20, the iPhone 11 Pro Max, and the OnePlus 8 Pro. Each of these phones has its own pros and cons, so be sure to do your research before making a purchase.
The Google Pixel 7’s camera randomly cracking is a major issue, and Google is working to address it. The company has released an update and is offering free repairs or replacements to affected users.
At this time, it appears that the issue is limited to the Google Pixel 7. Other models of the phone have not been reported to have this issue. If you’re considering buying a Google Pixel 7, it’s important to be aware of the potential issue and to take steps to protect your phone.
Ultimately, the Google Pixel 7 is still a great phone and it’s unlikely that the issue of the camera randomly cracking will be a major deterrent for potential buyers.


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Two ends of the immersive video content creation are working to come together - the capture and the editing. We hope the end result is what they project their goal to be: easy to create 360-degree videos...
GoPro Needs a Hero
Can a shift to software save the action camera giant?
www.theverge.com By Sean O'Kane
The next time you shoot video with your phone, Nick Woodman wants you to edit it with GoPro software. Then he wants you to do that again and again and again. It will be so good and fast and easy that you’ll get a rush, like a surfer riding the barrel of a wave, or a skateboarder stomping the perfect trick. And then that rush will keep you coming back for more. Woodman thinks this could turn you into a "habitual storyteller," and maybe then, if you don’t already own a GoPro, you might want to buy one.
The CEO and founder of GoPro is sitting at his desk on the third floor of the company’s headquarters, located in a severely nondescript business park in San Mateo, California. We’re talking about the next phase of his company and Woodman, typically buoyant in interviews, is having a moment. "One really exciting aspect of our brand is how many people like it, whether they’re a customer or not," he says. "It’s one of the things I’m most proud of, I’m all — it makes me a little bit teary-eyed," he says, actually dabbing the corner of his eye.
2015 WAS NOT A GREAT YEAR FOR GOPRO
2015 was, by all accounts, not a great year for GoPro. The company, famous for wearable cameras targeted toward surfers, mountain climbers, and anyone else living on the edge, shipped more cameras than ever, but its revenue dropped 31 percent between the fourth quarters of 2014 and 2015.
By the end of last year, GoPro’s stock value dropped to less than half of its original 2014 posting price. "Our growth rate has slowed, and some analysts have attributed this to competitive threats and our ability to address a market beyond our core customer," Woodman said during that first investor call of 2016, though he disputed that analysis.
In February, GoPro laid off 7 percent of its staff
and scaled back projections. In his first investor call of 2015, Woodman sounded jubilant. During the first one of 2016, he sounded as if he were in mourning...[continue reading]


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Toyota Financial Services to take majority stake in carpooling firm Faxi
08 May 2019
Author: Sean Keywood
Toyota Financial Services is making a major investment in carpooling firm Faxi, becoming majority shareholder.
Faxi offers an app and software platform that helps users share rides to work by connecting them with colleagues who use the same route and commute at similar times.
By tracking the proximity of users, it can establish whether journeys have genuinely been shared, allowing employers to offer financial incentives for carpooling.
Toyota Financial Services started working with Faxi last year for the development of a Toyota-branded carpooling platform to offer in Europe, and has now decided to take a majority stake, with ambitions to expand the Faxi platform across Europe and beyond.
Toyota Financial Services UK managing director Doug Gillies said: "In addition to delivering sales support for environmentally friendly hybrid electric technology, Toyota Financial Services is engaging in new mobility solutions.
"Building on the partnership with Faxi, TFS decided to invest in Faxi to introduce technology to reduce single-occupancy vehicles and the congestion and emissions that they cause.
"This is a game-changing technology and we're excited to get behind it with our brand."
Faxi chief executive and co-founder Tony Lynch said: "Large organisations across the globe have workplace parking issues.
"In addition to benefiting companies by solving this concern, employees are encouraged to carpool with co-workers by, for example, earning a reserved parking space.
"Ultimately, if more people carpool, this can have a considerable downsizing effect on the number of cars on the road, benefiting an entire community."


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Disney today fessed up to what now appears to have been an expensive mistake it made last month when it erroneously told some annual subscribers that their bill would be jumping to $89.99 a year from $79.99. In fact the price increase, which took effect March 26, lifted the price from $69.99 to $79.99—which Disney acknowledged in a follow up email to those subscribers this week. As a result of...
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TikTok CEO Goes to Washington With a Disparate Band of Allies
TikTok is one of the most popular entertainment services in the U.S., used monthly by nearly half of the population. Yet as the app battles for its life, it has remarkably few allies to provide support. Even those that directly benefit from TikTok, such as music labels and creators, have mixed feelings about TikTok, largely because they say it doesn’t pay its partners enough. That’s...
Virgin Orbit Nears $200 Million Funding Deal
Amazon Tests Palm-Scanning Technology at Panera Bread
Toyota Phases Out Amazon Alexa in Vehicles, Explores ChatGPT
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The Instant Oral History of the Silicon Valley Bank Collapse
On a cosmic level, the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank was a mere blip. The murmurs about trouble began last Wednesday, the panic spread via group texts and Twitter threads on Thursday, the bank went under on Friday, the government got its act together on Saturday, and on Sunday every current and former customer of SVB could breathe a cautious sigh of relief.


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IIT Hyderabad Start-Up Pure EV Launches ETrance+ Electric Scooter; Priced At Rs. 56,999
By Sameer Contractor
1 mins read
Published on August 18, 2020
- The ETrance+ gets a 1.25 kWh portable battery for easy charging
- The electric scooter will comes with eABS and a battery lever indicator
- The high-speed variant of the ETrance+ will be certified by December 2020
Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Hyderabad-incubated startup Pure EV has launched its new electric scooter - ETrance+ in India. The new Pure EV ETrance+ is priced at Rs. 56,999 (ex-showroom) and promises a range of 65 km on a single charge from its 1.25 kWh portable lithium-ion battery. This is the fifth electric scooter from Pure EV after the EPluto 7G, EPluto, ETrance, and the ETron+. The new electric scooter is being offered in four colours - red, blue, matte black and grey. The start-up says that the scooter comes with eABS, regenerative braking and a SOC indicator that shows the percentage of battery remaining.
Commenting on the launch of the new electric scooter, Rohit Vadera, CEO of PuREnergy, said, "In this COVID-19 pandemic scenario, thrust on personal mobility has increased significantly and people are looking for electric scooters at affordable prices. 'ETrance+' comes with a robust chassis design, body parts built for Indian road conditions and advanced features like regenerative braking, eABS and a SOC indicator shows the percentage of battery capacity remaining. We are confident that this model will meet the requirements of the majority of customers looking to buy EVs for their daily short commutes."
The ETrance+ uses a 250-watt brushless hub motor with a top speed of 25 kmph. The electric scooter comes with LED lights, 10-inch alloy wheels and drum brakes for either wheel. The ETrance+ comes with a portable battery that can be carried for charging at home. The charging time required for the battery remains under wraps though. Furthermore, the company says that a high-speed version of the e-scooter is currently under development that will be certified by December this year and will have a top speed of 55 kmph and a range of 90 km on a single charge. The high-speed ETrance+ will be priced at Rs. 69,999 (ex-showroom).
Pure EV says that the new electric scooter will be available at over 50 dealerships in 17 states by the end of this month including Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Haryana, Odisha, Rajasthan, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal and more.
Pure EV has an in-house battery manufacturing facility and a research base that works out of the IIT Hyderabad campus. The R&D team works towards the development of battery thermal management systems for long-range use and high-performance lithium-ion batteries. The company plans to expand its manufacturing base to a larger facility spread over 2 lakh sq.ft. with an annual capacity of two lakh EVs and battery manufacturing capacity of 5 GWh.The new plant will be commissioned sometime in 2021. At present, Pure EV has a capacity of producing 20,000 EVs.
Last Updated on August 18, 2020


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According to the 2019 haysmacintyre UK Hospitality Index, 90% of respondents are confident about the future of their own businesses. However, the chartered accounting firm found that the view of the wider industry was less upbeat, with only 39% of those questioned positive about the outlook for the sector as whole.
Amid top concerns is the availability of labour and overall impact of Brexit. This year, 83% of respondents said they think Brexit will impact negatively on their ability to recruit staff, compared to 77% in 2018.
‘It’s undeniable that conditions have been challenging for the hospitality sector this year,’ said Gareth Ogden, partner in the hospitality team at haysmacintyre. ‘The effect of Brexit on consumer demand and food costs is causing anxiety, but it is the uncertainty over the availability of staff which is having the greatest impact.’
Ogden said that despite these headwinds, and whilst turnover predictions are still markedly down on the heights of five years ago, the sector remains resilient.
‘Pubs, bars and restaurants are constantly improving what they offer customers, and responding positively to changing lifestyle choices and the drive for sustainable practises,’ he added.
The survey also highlighted the burden of business rates, with 80% of respondents calling on the Government for reform of the business rates system.
The 2019 haysmacintyre UK Hospitality Index includes responses from 41 operators, a number of whom were managing multiple sites, while others were single-site businesses.


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What is it?
Bitcoin is a new currency that was created in2009 by an unidentified person utilizing the alias Satoshi Nakamoto. Transactions are made without anymiddle guys— meaning, no banks! There are no deal fees and no have to give your real name. More merchants are starting to accept them: You can purchase web hosting services, pizza or even manicures.
Is it genuinely Anonymous for Mount Wilson residents?
Though each bitcoin transaction is recorded in a public log, names of purchasers and sellers are neverrevealed— just their wallet IDs. While that keeps bitcoin users‘ transactions private, it likewise lets thembuy or offer anything without easily tracing it back to them. That‘s why it has ended up being the currency of choice for people online purchasingdrugs or other illegal activities.
Compared to Brexit, Bitexit appears a breeze. On August 1st, without much agonizing or awkwardnegotiations, a group of Bitcoin activists and business owners managed to create a 2nd variation of the crypto-currency. It right away got a following: as The Economic expert went to press, a unit of “Bitcoin Money“ had a cost of $460 and tokens worth $7.6 bn were in blood circulation (although that is still much smaller sized than Bitcoin traditional, which stood at about $2,700 and almost $45bn).
This “fork“, as such occasions are called, came earlier than anticipated. But it is how experts had anticipated a two-year-old conflict over the future of Bitcoin to end. At the heart of this “civil war“ was the question of how to increase the capability of the system, which can deal with only up to seven transactions per second. The brand-new version is able to process more than 50 per 2nd, however otherwise works much like the initial one. [google-map location=”Mount Wilson CA”]
Will Bitcoin Cash be more than simply another “altcoin“, as the many existing clones of the crypto-currency are called? It is backed by Chinese“miners“, firms that provide the computing power to validate payments and mint new digital coins. Theyhave been unhappy with how the initial system has been managed by its developers— and made some additional technical tweaks to make sure that the new Bitcoin makes it through. The followers of the two versions will now contest which can declare to be the “ genuine“Bitcoin
All time High Costs in Mount Wilson California
The cost of bitcoin has actually smashed through $5,000 to an all-time high.
The cryptocurrency increased by more than 8% to $5,243 having actually begun the year at $966. Bitcoin has actually skyrocketed by more than 750% in the past year and deserves 4 times as much as an ounce of gold.
But the cost has actually been volatile. The digital currency plunged below $3,000 in mid-September after the Chinese authorities revealed a crackdown.Beijing ordered cryptocurrency exchanges to stop trading andblock new registrations, due to fears that increasing numbers of customers stackinginto the bitcoin market could prompt widerfinancial problems.
The primary trader at for Mount Wilson California, said:“The returns are genuinely impressive, specifically giventhe current restriction on bitcoin trading in China, wheredemand had previously accounted for a minimum of 10% of all global volumes.“
The Russian president called today for guideline of cryptocurrencies, stating their usage “bears severe risks“ such as money laundering, tax evasion and funding for terrorism. However he also cautioned against enforcing “too many barriers,“ which appears to have actually given bitcoin a boost.
In spite of warnings over a bubble, bitcoinis gaining in approval. Last month, a London home designer, The Collective, stated it would allow its tenants to pay their deposits in bitcoin and accept rent payments in the cryptocurrency by the end of the year.
History of Bitcoin
A man called Satoshi Nakamoto posted a term paper to an unknown cryptography listserv explaining his style for a new digital currency that he called bitcoin. None of the list‘s veterans had become aware of him, and what little info could be gleaned was dirty and inconsistent. In an online profile, he stated he resided inJapan. His e-mail address was from a complimentaryGerman service. Google searches for his name showed upno relevant details; it wasclearly a pseudonym. However while Nakamoto himself mayhave been a puzzle, his production crackeda issue that had baffledcryptographers for decades. The concept of digital money—convenient and untraceable, liberated from the oversight of governments and banks— hadbeen a hot subject given that the birth of the Web. Cypherpunks, the 1990s motion of libertarian cryptographers, dedicated themselves to theproject. Yet every effort to produce virtual money had foundered, especially in Mount Wilson CA. Ecash, an anonymous system introduced in the early 1990s by cryptographer David Chaum, stopped working in part because it depended upon the existing facilities ofgovernment and credit card business. Other propositions followed— bit gold, RPOW, b-money—but none got off the ground.


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The crowd packed the halls of the red dot design museum on Wednesday 3 October to celebrate Okamura’s 67th anniversary. Highlights included the unveiling of new products and a festive Japanese drum performance.
The internet never sleeps! Here's the stuff you might have missed
In the University of Adelaide, a gorgeous chaos of pattern and colour pulls students down the proverbial rabbit hole. But ARM Architecture has been careful to control the immersion, with meticulously considered interiors that facilitate student-centred learning and imaginative ideation.


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Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said the Biden administration is aiming to boost U.S. economic capacity by focusing on issues like labor supply and public infrastructure, an approach she called “modern supply-side economics.”
The administration’s approach is a departure from traditional supply-side economics, which seeks to promote economic growth through tax cuts and deregulation, Ms. Yellen said in a speech Friday to the World Economic Forum. She pointed to a bipartisan infrastructure bill that became law in November and President Biden’s proposal for social programs—such as child care and paid family leave—and climate-change initiatives as examples of the administration’s approach to economic policy.
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Author: Li Keqiang
Posted on: scio.gov.cn, January 27th,2017
This is a testing time.
Almost a decade on, the world is still reeling from the fallout of the global financial crisis. China faces its fair share of challenges, but we choose to confront them head on.
Above all, we remain convinced that economic openness serves everyone better, at home and abroad. The world is a community of shared destiny. It’s far preferable for countries to trade goods and services and bond through investment partnerships than to trade barbs and build barriers. Should differences arise, it behooves us all to discuss them with respect and a keen sense of equality.
China stands resolute with the World Trade Organization and multilateral free-trade agreements designed to be inclusive. Economic globalization has enabled the creation and sharing of wealth on an unprecedented scale. There are problems, too, more on the sharing side. These can be addressed, but only if countries work together to ensure that a rising tide really does lift all boats.
At home, the government is opting for a lighter, more balanced touch while engaging the market. To make doing business in China easier, the state is consolidating administrative reviews and focusing more on compliance oversight, risk preparedness, and providing services. We keep improving implementation of the VAT reform to make sure that tax costs drop across the board.
We are opening new sectors of the economy to investment and widening access to many others. We are piloting a “negative list” model before a nationwide rollout, where investment access is assumed unless specifically restricted. More measures are in the pipeline to ensure all businesses registered in China are treated equally. Companies can enjoy additional incentives if they invest in less-developed western regions or in the northeastern industrial belt.
While the government is continuing to invest in infrastructure to boost domestic demand, more resources are going to improving rural roads, water supply, sewage systems, and information networks — areas that traditionally haven’t been as visible. In parallel with such hardware improvements, we’re continuing efforts to expand the safety net, not least for the more vulnerable members of society.
Structural reforms are showing results.
In 2016, China shed more than 65 million and 290 million tons of inefficient steel and coal-mining capacity, respectively. We plan to raise those numbers to 140 million and 800 million tons within the next three to five years to restore healthier fundamentals to those industries. Meanwhile, the government is working with business communities on various retraining programs. In 2016 alone, 700,000 workers once employed in downsized industries moved on to new jobs.
At the same time, new growth drivers are emerging strong. Services, which have surpassed manufacturing as a share of the economy, keep consolidating their lead. Consumption now contributes more than 60 percent of the growth in China’s gross domestic product. While creating new value, these drivers are also boosting the efficiency and competitiveness of traditional sectors, with high-tech and equipment manufacturing leading industrial expansion.
Entrepreneurship and innovation are taking root. Meanwhile, new business models are thriving, transforming many previously unimaginable services into daily conveniences. The mobile-internet-enabled sharing economy is only one obvious case. Besides ordering takeout or hailing cars, housekeeping, health consulting, and many more services are now just a swipe away.
The numbers bear out the case. The economy grew a healthy 6.7 percent last year. More important, despite industrial consolidation and ever more robots finding their way into factories, the job market is proving resilient. The economy has added more than 13 million jobs every year since 2013. Unemployment stands at a multiyear low.
In a world with a plethora of uncertainties, China offers an anchor of stability and growth with its consistent message of support for reform, openness, and free trade. The times may be difficult. But that’s all the more reason not to lose sight of these principles, which have stood China — and the world — in good stead.


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Along with public and private banks in India, the Government is issuing loan schemes. Schemes for businesses hit by Coronavirus outbreak in the country.
Here are some of the top schemes for businesses hit by Coronavirus:
SBI Special CoronaVirus Funding Scheme
India’s largest lender – The State Bank of India has drawn a funding scheme to assist small businesses who’s operations are impacted by the virus.
News update by the Times of India stated that tSBI’s new scheme – the Covid Emergency Credit Line (CECL) will be in motion up till June 30. The scheme will be equivalent to 10% of the businesses working capital limit, subject to a cap of 200 crores.
You can avail the CECL at a rate of 7.25%. There is no processing fee or pre-payment penalty for this scheme. SBI is currently the first to launch this scheme, whilst other public sector units are set to follow suit.
Important things to know about the SBI COVID Loans Scheme:
- CECL will be in the form of a demand loan with a term of 12 months to help meet temporary cash flow needs.
- The loan scheme for businesses is available to all standard accounts who do not have overdue for over 30 days on Mar 16.
- Borrowers who have availed specialised loan products for small businesses are also eligible for the facility.
There is no link on the SBI website for this yet, here are some news items for this scheme:
The Credit Guarantee Fund Scheme for Micro and Small Enterprises (CGTMSE) was launched by the Government of India (GoI) to make collateral-free credit available to the MSME sector.
While this scheme is not exclusively created by the Government to both new and existing enterprises are eligible for this loan coverage. Under the scheme, the MSME Ministry and the Small Industries
Development Bank of India (SIDBI) established a trust named the Credit Guarantee Fund Trust for Micro and Small Enterprises (CGTMSE) to implement the Credit Guarantee Scheme.
A lot of businesses are temporarily shutting shop because they are unable to pay daily wages to employees. However, this Government scheme for Businesses hit by Coronavirus provides unemployment insurance to workers who have subscribed to the Employees’ State Insurance (ESI) scheme. It helps cover workers during the pandemic.
The ESI is a self-financing health insurance scheme for formal sector workers in India managed by the Employees State Insurance Corporation (ESIC).
Under the scheme, workers who become unemployed due to the Coronavirus get compensation in the form of the cash up to three months of unemployment. A condition of this scheme is that it can be availed only once in a lifetime.