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A History of Banking Where You’re Known
with a Future of Moving you Forward
Every day, thousands of people fall victim to fraudulent emails, texts and calls from scammers pretending to be their bank. Together with American Bankers Association (ABA), The State Bank Group is working to change that by raising awareness within our communities to prevent fraud.
Below are some examples of questions you could receive from fraudsters through a phone call, text, or email that your bank would never ask.
If you’re not sure if a phone call, email, or text is legitimate, review the Pro Tips below to help you determine if it’s a scammer trying to get your information.
Phishing is fraud. Plain and simple. But every day, thousands of people fall for fraudulent emails, texts, and calls from online scammers pretending to be a bank. Some of these fakes are obvious, while others can be quite convincing. We’d like to help. Take the #BanksNeverAskThat quiz to learn how to spot online banking scams, and you could win weekly drawings up to $1,000* during the month of October, courtesy of the American Bankers Association. October is National Cybersecurity Awareness Month. Watch our social channels for helpful tips throughout the month, with reminders to take the weekly quizzes.
*Drawing prizes given in form of prepaid card. Terms and conditions apply. Void where prohibited. See ofﬁcial rules at www.BanksNeverAskThat.com. ©2020. American Bankers Association. All rights reserved. Not-for-proﬁt reproduction and distribution is authorized.
National Cybersecurity Awareness Month is a collaborative effort between government and industry that raises nationwide awareness of cyber crimes and prevention every October. Because it coincides with the launch of #BanksNeverAskThat, ABA is celebrating with a cybersecurity-month sweepstakes. Every week during the month of October, site visitors can test their scam savviness by taking the #BanksNeverAskThat quiz, then sharing it on Twitter for the chance to win one of 15 gift cards. All entrants in ABA’s sweepstakes will also be eligible to win the $1,000 grand prize at the end of the month.


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Now that's custom-made! Bracelet is engraved with your DNA (but could it be used to clone you?)
- The £89 ($149) bracelet is engraved with non-coding DNA sequences
- These are sequences that are unique to each individual wearer
- Customers are sent swab kits to collect DNA from the inside of their mouth
- This data is sent to a lab to be decoded into letters A,C, T and G
- Firm claims the DNA sequences do not reveal any data that could be used to easily identify the wearer
Forget having your name printed on a wallet, or initials engraved on a briefcase, the latest in personalised gifts is much more scientific.
A team of Italian designers are selling bracelets engraved with the wearer’s DNA sequence.
By taking swabs from the inside of people’s mouths, experts turn the non-coding DNA into a long sequence of letters A, C, T and G.
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A team of Italian designers are selling bracelets engraved with the wearer's DNA sequence, pictured. By taking swabs from the inside of people's mouths, experts turn their non-coding DNA into a long sequence of letters A, C, T and G. Bracelets are expected to retail for £89 ($149), and that includes the price of the DNA kit
THE DNAME SPECIFICATIONS
Materials: Rubber and polished iron, or brushed titanium
Length: 6.1 inches (155 mm) easily adjustable on all wrists; a bigger size of the bracelet will be also be available
Width: 0.78 inches (20mm)
Depth: 0.1 inches (2.5mm)
Weight: 1.05 ounces (30g)
Colours: It will be available in black, purple, blue, yellow, white, red, pink and green
Price: £89 ($149) with free shipping to Europe and Canada
To fund production of the swab kits and bracelets, Milan-based DNAME has launched a Kickstarter campaign, and has already achieved its £5,000 ($8,425) target.
Bracelets are expected to retail for £89 ($149), and that includes the price of the DNA kit.
According to the campaign, the scientists don’t engrave the entire DNA sequence; it only takes the non-coding information.
The human DNA sequence is made up of approximately three billion letters and each person has around 99.9 per cent in common.
According to the campaign, the scientists don't engrave the entire DNA sequence; it only takes the non-coding information. The DNA sequence printed on the bracelets, pictured, only includes the letters that are unique to each individual wearer, and not the 99.9% they have in common with other humans
The DNA sequence printed on the bracelets only includes the letters that are unique to each individual wearer, so does not reveal a person’s entire decoded genome.
And the firm assures customers that nothing in the sequence it engraves reveals anything about the wearer’s health, sex, hair colour, height or body mass.
Each customer will be sent a kit for the DNA analysis at home and the sample is collected by rubbing the inside of the mouth using a cotton-tipped buccal swab.
Each customer will be sent a kit for the DNA analysis at home and the sample is collected by rubbing the inside of the mouth using a cotton-tipped buccal swab. The Kickstarter campaign ends on 25 May and bracelets, pictured, will begin being shipped in August
The kit is then returned to the lab with the wearer’s authorisation that the experts are allowed to look at the results.
These results are decoded into the unique sequence of letters, and engraved on a bracelet made of iron or titanium. For security, DNAME said it ‘will never disclose data with anybody else.’
DNAME was founded by Mario Ricciardi, Giacomo Carloni, Luca Bernabè and Enrico Parise.
The group’s Kickstarter campaign ends on 25 May and bracelets will begin being shipped in August.
Shipping will be free in Europe and Canada.
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domain: news


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Blog: Value is in style
Leonie Barrie | 25 February 2010
“Regardless of whether the economy is weak or strong, value isn’t going out of style,” The TJX Companies’ CEO Carol Meyrowitz told analysts yesterday.
But her comments, intended to reassure investors that the off-price retailer’s new-found shoppers aren’t going to desert its stores now that the economy seems to be in rebound, will also have struck a chord at the other end of the retail spectrum.
Stephen I Sadove, chairman and CEO of upscale department store retailer Saks Inc, separately told analysts its customers want “service and differentiated products with value” – and that it intends to offer them more designer products at lower prices.
But there’s a big difference between “value” and “value for money” – and it’s the latter that will be key going forward.
Shoppers of the future might be prepared to pay a little bit more for a garment, but they’ll only buy one rather than several of the cheapest versions. And that’s what retailers will have to contend with this year – meaning they’ll have to work a bit harder to secure growth.
Continuing our look at what lies ahead for the apparel industry and its supply chain in 2017, the panel of industry experts consulted by just-style last week tackled likely shifts in the sourcing land...
This week our focus turns to first thoughts from a panel of industry experts consulted by just-style on the challenges and opportunities likely to face the apparel supply chain in 2017, with prospects...
Welcome back after the holiday break, and from the team here at just-style I’d like to wish all our readers a happy and prosperous New Year....
Apparel sourcing is a complex process built on a mix of location, logistics, lead-time, price, compliance, risk and reliability. And it's in a constant state of flux as retailers, brands and manufactu...
- $1.7bn package to boost Pakistan clothing exports
- Outlook 2017 – What next for apparel sourcing?
- Mexico riots hit apparel retailers and shipments
- Is China about to burst its apparel trade bubble?
- Trump and the apparel industry – Infographic
- MAS Holdings planning second industrial park
- Cambodia clothing exports at risk from Brexit
- JC Penney latest retailer to shutter stores?
- Aéropostale to reopen 500 stores across the US
- Apparel brands urge Bangladesh PM to address wages
- Global apparel markets: product developments and innovations, October 2016
- Anti-odour clothing: fresh fashion for an active lifestyle
- Southeast Asia strategic sourcing review – a focus on Cambodia, Vietnam and Myanmar
- Global market review of lingerie – forecasts to 2022
- Outdoor performance apparel 2016: A broader perspective


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Event Horizon: 10 Tech Trends Coming in 2015
Here are ten tech trends to watch for in 2015, including developments in personal stealth wear, immersive virtual reality and artificial intelligence.
In the world of emerging technology, prognostication is a tricky business. Things can change quickly in the tech business, where one breakthrough -- in research, application or even legislation -- can trigger a cascade of rapid consequences. But what the hey -- we'll give it a shot. Here are ten tech trends to watch for in 2015, including developments in personal stealth wear, immersive virtual reality and artificial intelligence.
Mobile payment systems -- in which you use your smartphone in place of your credit card -- are expected to become more widespread in 2015, with
and competing services like
staking out new territory. The upside is that mobile payment systems can make transactions much faster and potentially reduce credit card fees. The downside is that mobile payment systems open up perilous new territory in privacy and security concerns. Which leads us to our next item.
Mobile payment services like Apple Pay communicate with point-of-sale devices by way of near-field communication (NFC) technology. As with older radio-frequency identification (RFID) systems, these transactions are vulnerable to hackers who can steal your information just by being in physical proximity. (One of 2014's most popular video games, "Watch Dogs," was based on this kind of scenario.) In response, several different kinds of stealth wear and accessories are expected to become widely available in 2015. In addition to
for your credit cards, look for jackets, bags and even
designed to block wireless signals to your phone or other mobile device. Or you can go right to the source with privacy-first devices like Silent Circle's
or the Boeing
The much-anticipated Oculus Rift virtual reality head-mounted display is expected to finally hit stores in 2015, and should bring with it a fleet of new VR technologies and applications. Sony's
will be a direct competitor in the realm of gaming, but the prospect of a truly viable VR headset is already spinning off new weirdness. Several film production studios have sprung up promising to bring new and retrofitted 3-D
directly to your eyeballs.
The Internet of Things, or IoT, is the emerging designation for the next wave of Internet connectivity systems that will network not just our computers and devices, but virtually everything else on the planet. The term actually refers to a range of integrated technologies including wireless communication, augmented reality, robotics and microelectronics. Current examples include Internet-enabled home appliances that let you control your refrigerator from your smartphone. But it could go the other way, too -- your fridge telling your phone what you need to buy when you're out grocery shopping. IoT principles are at the core of future transportation initiatives breaking new ground in 2015 -- like
for self-driving cars.
In December, Skype released the first iteration of its
for spoken English and Spanish. In the
, featuring students from the U.S. and Mexico, the system works just like in the sci-fi films. You speak your piece in English, the computer instantly translates to Spanish, and vice-versa.
it hopes to roll out additional languages soon and industry watchers expect more breakthroughs in real-time translation in 2015. Decades of research in speech recognition are coming together with machine learning and "deep neural network" A.I. technology to facilitate new possibilities. The real killer app -- instant voice translation on your smartphone -- is one of the most exciting possibilities of 2015.
Hollywood and Stephen Hawking both warned about the dangers of artificial intelligence in 2014, but that hasn't stopped researchers from going forward with plans for the new year.
continues to be one of the busiest areas of study in emerging technology. For instance, IBM's A.I.
-- the former "Jeopardy" champ -- has been working in the field of medical research for several years now. Advanced A.I. systems like Watson can mine decades of medical data in a fraction of the time it would take human technicians. In 2015, IBM hopes to deploy Watson's natural language processing and hypothesis generation in several additional industries through commercial and research partnerships.
The promise of self-driving cars has been motoring around for a few years now, but 2015 may well be the first calendar year that we see some real, on-the-street results. Truly autonomous vehicles still have plenty of technological (and legislative) hazards to navigate, but many improved "driver assist" technologies are expected in 2015. Just before the holidays,
announced that its prototype was ready for testing. Volvo already has a car on the road that feature tech developed for self-driving. Its
sedan has built-in adaptive cruise control that maintains a set distance, in stop-and-go traffic, between you and the car in front. The
allows the car to steer itself into tight parking spots.
The idea of flexible displays -- screens that can be bent, twisted and even rolled up like a newspaper -- is another one of those sci-fi ideas that keeps surfacing then submerging again. Functional flexible displays actually date all the way back to the 1970s. But we should see some movement in 2015 as major players like LG and Samsung continue development on paper-thin OLED (organic light-emitting-diode) panels. The technology is being explored for both small screens (smartphone) and large screens (television). OLED displays are much more durable than traditional screens as well, promising future displays that are both tougher and more flexible than the one you have today.
In the wake of the epic Sony Pictures hack and a scary increase of online security breaches, you can expect to see a significant surge in products and services that offer to help protect your money and information online. Developments on the horizon include improvements in
, credit cards that use
, and more
that act as pre-emptive identity theft protection systems. Also watch for companies that store your information -- from social media to shopping -- to beef up security protocols, on both their end and yours.
Drones will continue to swarm the news headlines in 2015, for good or ill, thanks to their potential utility in hundreds of industries -- and some percolating issues around regulation. According to a recent
, the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration has 167 pending applications for commercial drone projects, with "hundreds more" expected in 2015. Amazon is aggressively testing drone package delivery systems, insurance companies hope to use drones for inspections, and industrial concerns want to use them for monitoring facilities. Meanwhile,
are finding new uses for UAVs, and a huge market is emerging for
. The skies are about to to get very crowded. Let us know what your own predictions are in the comments below, and we'll meet back here at the end of 2015 to see who was right. Happy New Year.


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Ames Goldsmith Corp., a Glens Falls manufacturer of processed silver products, finally broke into the digital market this year after trying for nearly 15 years.
Selling silver flake to makers of digital devices has added $2.5 million in sales, bumping up the company's annual revenue to $60 million, and allowing Ames to break into markets in Korea, Taiwan, Germany and the United Kingdom. Given the new and projected workload, Ames plans to expand its manufacturing facility in Glens Falls by 15,000 square feet within the next year.
Ames transforms silver for uses in hundreds of products. Silver flake, for example, is used to make inks for plasma TV displays, and it's also sprayed on the insides of cell phones to shield them from frequencies that can garble signals.
"Plasma display has huge growth potential," said Michael Herman, the company's materials development manager. "Imagine everyone having a plasma display TV. And they're using the same technology and displays for computer screens."
Ames credits Herman, a chemist, for giving the company a stake in the digital market. Ames recruited Herman back to his hometown in 2001, snatching him from Ames' main competitor, Technic Inc. in Cranston, R.I.
Technic did some groundwork in the early 1990s that gave it a leg up in the digital market. Ames tried to catch up, but Technic managed to hold its advantage.
Ames searched for a chemist to advance its effort for almost five years. Each chemist the company courted refused to move to Glens Falls. Ames finally wooed Herman away from Technic three years ago. Herman began developing Ames' ability to make silver powder and flake, and was ready to unleash the company on the digital market this year.
Bill Hamelin, executive vice president of Ames, said the company's main focus for years has been silver salt chemicals, which are used in camera film. But that market is slowly dying.
"Digital is taking over," Hamelin said.
Ames now supplies companies in 10 countries and more than 500 customers with silver products. The company is considering moving its silver flake production to Asia, closer to where most plasma screens and cell phones are made.
In addition to silver salt chemicals, powder and flake, Ames also supplies silver for a catalyst used in petroleum products, furnishings, car parts, batteries, soda bottles and antifreeze. Saudi Arabia is Ames' biggest catalyst customer.
Ames also is contemplating a joint venture with Chinese partners to bring the catalyst refining business to China, but no deal has been finalized.
Ames' growth potential might stretch beyond digital devices. Herman hopes to find a market for Ames' nano-size silver powders. He is also working with a number of companies to develop new silver flake for membrane switches--tiny electric conductors in computer keyboards and microwave keypads.


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Hopper Scores with Holiday Travel Demand, Redwood Materials Partners with Panasonic
Investors in a slew of tech-forward travel-related startups may find some benefit from the strong holiday travel season that’s shaping up.
As CNBC wrote in a recent article, travel spending in the U.S. has soared, due to a decline in COVID concerns and flexible office policies that are allowing Americans to travel more and book jaunts well into the traditional offseason. And this pick-up in activity has come despite a year of outsized inflation that has put a strain on household budgets.
Canada-based Hopper, a private company that is reportedly on track to record $4.5 billion in sales this year, is one of the largest online travel agencies in North America with a reported 80 million downloads of its free app. Like Kayak, Expedia, and Priceline, the company functions as a flight price search engine: it pulls in flight pricing from all the airlines to show customers which have the cheapest fares. Earlier this month, Hopper announced that it had secured a $96 million investment from credit-card company Capital One, which previously led Hopper’s Series F round that raised $170 million in March 2021.
Last year, Hopper and Capital One launched Capital One Travel, a Hopper-powered travel booking portal combining cardholder benefits with fintech products like price freezes, price drop protection, and cancel-for-any reason insurance.
The revival in travel is also creating opportunities for two San Francisco based car-sharing services that are providing an alternative to the traditional rental-car business. In October, Turo, a “peer-to-peer’’ car sharing platform that has been described as the Airbnb for cars, will expand to Australia before the end of the year. In June, Turo expanded to France after acquiring competitor OuiCar, and the company expanded to New York state in a move that aims to cater to post-COVID travel needs.
Turo filed to go public in January this year, but so far has yet to make its debut. Thus far, the company has raised over $500 million in funding over 13 rounds, according to TechCrunch.
Getaround, a rival to Turo, is expanding its reach through a partnership with Kayak. The partnership will allow travelers searching for cars or trucks on Kayak to book vehicles for as little as an hour through Getaround. In May, Getaround agreed to go public via a special purpose acquisition company or SPAC. The deal is expected to close next month. Last month, the company announced that it had raised an additional $140 million in a Series E financing, bringing its total funding to nearly $600 million.
As the U.S. economy gets greener, a growth in consumer demand for travel-related automobiles will create additional demand for electric vehicles. On that score, TechCrunch reported last week that Redwood Materials, an electric-vehicle battery materials and recycling startup based in Nevada, has landed a multibillion-dollar deal to supply battery components to Panasonic as efforts accelerate to build a domestic supply chain in North America to support an expected growth in EV sales. Redwood said it will supply Panasonic Energy of North America with cathode material for EV battery cells produced at a new factory currently under construction in Kansas. The deal, the largest yet for Redwood, is valued at several billion dollars, according to TechCrunch.


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We have reached a tipping point - people prefer to shop online than in-store
(PRWEB UK) 19 March 2015
During the last year a number of polls have asked which consumers prefer: shopping online or in store. The results for these questionnaires have often been flatly contradictory. Now pioneering e-commerce delivery specialists Fastlane International couriers has reviewed all the data and revealed in its ‘poll of polls’ that consumers really do prefer buying online than on the high street. But it was a tight result!
Fastlane International looked at the nine key consumer polls conducted in the last 12 months, and the result was, taking into account the number of people polled and differences in how questions are phrased, that consumers prefer to buy non-necessity purchases from websites.
Fastlane International’s Head of Public Relations, David Jinks MILT, says: ‘The move to online shopping has been relentless in the last few years, but now it really does seem that we have reached a significant tipping point and we now know more people prefer to shop online than in the high street.’
‘We have looked at research from significant industry researchers and retailers, from PwC and AT Kearney to UPS, Wipro Digital and the Office for National Statistics. Some 15,000 people have been surveyed in these reports, across both the UK and USA; and while some found consumers had yet to make the switch to online, almost all polls found that the gap was closing between online and offline, compared to previous research.’ continued David.
Says David: ‘It has been an interesting challenge comparing the different polls, not all of which are asking exactly the same questions. It is rather like comparing apples with pears at times. However what is clear is the general move to online shopping is not slowing down. Consumers who are already internet shoppers in particular expressed a high preference for making ever more of their purchases and product research online.’
In the pro-online camp research by Wipro Digital in January 2015 revealed 71% of consumers in the UK and 61% in the US report doing more than half of their 2014 holiday shopping online - up from 2013, when only 45% of UK and 36% of US shoppers shopped predominantly online.
Those surveys finding for brick and mortar stores included PwC which found 40% of consumers make purchases inside a physical store at least once a week, compared to just 27% online. Finally an influential survey into clothes-buying found 45% of respondents preferred in-store clothes shopping, with 23% saying they prefer online. However a critical 32% said ‘it depends’, revealed the informative eZonomics poll, illustrating the increasingly flexible attitude people have in the era of multichannel.
Concludes David: ‘There are famously lies, damn lies, and statistics! However on balance it is clear that those consumers who use the internet already are increasingly likely to make it their preferred choice. Our “poll of polls” revealed that, for everyday necessity items, such as food and medicines, the shop is still the default option, but the internet is increasingly the preferred choice for gifts, electrical and hobby items. A billion parcels are expected to be shipped in the UK alone this year thanks to the boom in e-commerce, and Fastlane expects this trend to continue exponentially.’
For further information see http://www.wedelivertheworld.co.uk.


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After the death of a loved one, family members face the very personal question of how best to commemorate their beloved kin. Now you can keep your lost relatives with you at all times... literally. As jewelry.
Nancy Ryan is the keeper of the ultimate “family jewel” —one created from the ashes of her parents. Ryan’s gem is a yellow diamond that looks all-natural, but really is man-made. Or in Ryan’s case, man and woman-made. It’s called a LifeGem, and it’s an actual “carbon” copy of her loved ones .
“[Nancy’s] idea was to take her mom and her dad and combine them and have one life gem made out of both of them,” said Richard Collins, the funeral home director and LifeGem representative who worked with Ryan.
With just eight ounces of cremated remains and a few thousand dollars, anyone can turn deceased loved ones into colorful carats. The first step is the cremation -- cremated remains contain the carbon needed to produce a synthetic diamond. These are not the first man-made diamonds, but the founders of Lifegem say they are the first to create them from the carbon from human remains. The process is straightforward: The carbon is heated, turned into graphite, and placed into a diamond press, where it is subjected to heat and pressure. Five months later... Grandma’s a gem!
“I loved my parents tremendously and respected them enormously,” says Ryan. “I feel tremendous comfort in knowing this is the essence of their existence.”
And LifeGems are not just for people. There’s also Pet Gem. Yes, you can even wear Rover around your neck.
For more information, go to www.LifeGem.com.


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SYDNEY (May 5, 2014) — HotelClub, the online hotel booking community owned by leading online travel company Orbitz Worldwide Inc. (NYSE:OWW), on Monday announced the appointment of Dandan Cheng as VP & Managing Director, HotelClub China.
In this newly created role she will lead HotelClub’s Chinese brand “HotelClub (“Haokeb?ng”)” in China’s rapidly growing travel sector. Based in Shanghai, China, Cheng will report to Nicolas Chu, President of HotelClub.
“Dandan’s leadership will propel HotelClub towards becoming a top choice for Chinese customers booking hotels for their outbound travel needs,” said Chu.
Cheng joins HotelClub from eBay Inc. where she most recently held the position of Country Manager of the eBay marketplace in China, setting up their cross-border exporting business, growing it significantly and achieving notable growth.
“HotelClub’s easy-to-use mobile booking apps and its HotelClub Rewards program that offers numerous club benefits, including up to 7 percent back on bookings and members extras (such as free upgrade when you stay), will be powerful tools to drive Chinese consumers to the Haokeb?ng brand,” said Cheng.
Cheng served in previous positions as a management consultant working for firms including A.T Kearney and Accenture. She holds an MBA from INSEAD Business School and a degree in Computer Science from Fudan University.
HotelClub is operated by Australian registered HotelClub Pty Ltd, part of Orbitz Worldwide Inc (NSYE:OWW). HotelClub is a global online accommodation community for travellers in the know. Our members receive Club Benefits every time they make a hotel booking, including free extras when they stay, up to 7 percent Member Rewards back on bookings, Priority Club Service and exclusive deals on hotels. Member Rewards can be redeemed any time, anywhere in the world – no restrictions. With accommodation choices in 7,400 cities across 141 countries worldwide, there’s a hotel to suit every traveller’s needs. Membership is free and services are available in 35 currencies and 17 languages.
Orbitz Worldwide (NYSE:OWW) is a leading global online travel company using technology to transform the way consumers around the world plan and purchase travel. www.orbitz.com


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A quarter of pet owners sign their pet's name when writing a card
And the latest research shows that one in 12 – eight per cent – of owners actually send cards from their pet.
Britain's men put more effort than women into wrapping up Christmas presents and writing Christmas cards for their partner, according to a survey by the Queen's Christmas Cracker supplier.
Polling 2,000 gift givers across the country, IG Design Group, a leading designer, innovator and manufacturer of gift packaging, crackers and greetings cards, unwrapped some of the surprising habits we have when it comes to Christmas gifts and cards.
Of all of the facts it discovered, perhaps the most surprising was that gift givers are more likely to put effort into wrapping up Christmas gifts and writing Christmas cards for their partner than for their parents, friends or siblings, and it is men (41 per cent) that put the most effort into this compared to women (26 per cent).
However, men make less effort when it comes to wrapping gifts and writing cards for their parents, with only 10 per cent of them putting the effort into a nicely presented gift, compared to 22 per cent of women.
Women start buying Christmas supplies two weeks before men on average
Men put more effort into wrapping gifts for their partner than their parents
Design Group also found out that gift givers start buying their Christmas stationery (cards, gift bags and wrapping paper) an average of five and a half weeks before Christmas, with women starting their Christmas buying about two weeks earlier than men.
What makes Christmas special is not just the day itself but the lead-up
But most people don't start wrapping their presents until an average of one week and six days before Christmas, with 8 per cent leaving the wrapping to Christmas Eve.
When it comes to Christmas cards, over a quarter of women (27 per cent) sign them on behalf on their partner without their knowledge, compared to just 15 per cent of men.
Eight per cent of owners actually send Christmas cards from their pets
Paul Fineman, chief executive at IG Design Group said: “For most of us, what makes Christmas special is not just the day itself but the lead-up.
"Christmas lasts many months for some, and this research shows that many of us like to be organised and get into the Christmas spirit early on, with the choosing, wrapping and sending of gifts and cards a big part of the festivities.”


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Heartland Payment Systems Inc. has agreed to pay up to $2.4 million to settle cardholder class-actions for losses from the payment processor's massive data security breach.
Under the proposed settlement, Princeton, N.J.-based Heartland will pay a minimum of $1 million to class members who submit valid claims for losses resulting from the breach, in which millions of credit and payment cards were stolen. The company disclosed the intrusion Jan. 20.
The settlement, which is subject to court approval, resolves all actions against Heartland related to the intrusion by anyone in the U.S. who used payment cards in the country between Dec. 6, 2007 and Dec. 31, 2008, and those who allege they suffered losses, the company announced Monday.
"We are pleased to have reached a fair and reasonable settlement agreement that helps cardholders recover losses they may have incurred directly related to the criminal intrusion," Bob Carr, Heartland's chairman and chief executive officer, said in a prepared statement. "We are committed to providing our merchants and their customers with a secure processing solution that protects them from the growing threat of cyber crime."
Heartland also will pay all administrative costs of the settlement, including up to $1.5 million for the cost of notifying class members, and $760,000 for attorneys representing the consumers in the class actions. The company also agreed to submit a report from an independent expert on what it's done and plans to do to improve its computer security in the wake of the breach.
Last week, the company announced a settlement with American Express in which it will pay the credit card company $3.6 million to resolve intrusion-related issues. Earlier this month, Heartland announced that a U.S. District Court judge in New Jersey dismissed a shareholder class-action suit against it resulting from the data breach.
Heartland's systems were breached last year when hackers installed malware to sniff data crossing the company's network. In August, a grand jury indicted Albert Gonzalez and two Russians on charges of stealing more than 130 million credit and debit cards from five companies, including Heartland.


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Intu Properties, the owner of shopping centres including the Trafford Centre in Manchester and Lakeside in Essex, has warned it risks going under if it is unable to raise further funds.
The struggling shopping centre giant posted a loss of £2bn for 2019, up from £1.17bn the year before. A spate of retailer administrations and restructurings forced Intu to write down the value of its malls by nearly £2bn. The estimated value of its portfolio of shopping centres dropped 22% to £6.6bn.
The company flagged a “material uncertainty in relation to Intu’s ability to continue as a going concern”. However, it said it had options, including selling off more assets, refinancing its £4.5bn debt and negotiating with its lenders.
In a statement to the stock exchange, Intu said: “We have options including alternative capital structures and further disposals to provide liquidity, and will seek to negotiate covenant waivers where appropriate. These would address potential covenant remedies and the upcoming refinancing activities, with the first material debt maturities in early 2021.”
Intu was forced to abandon an emergency cash call last week because “extreme” market conditions left it unable to raise its minimum target of £1.3bn from investors.
Intu said it expects its net rental income to fall further this year on a like-for-like basis, but by a lower amount than in 2019. It is closely monitoring the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on its centres, but said the number of visitors was broadly unchanged in the first 10 weeks of 2020.


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Acquiring legal cannabis in New York will soon be a fact, with the state legalizing recreational use in 2021. Now, new reports say that the Empire Condition could impose a potency tax, elevating weed selling prices to up to $70 for an eighth.
Per Syracuse.com, the legislation would tax distributors different quantities depending on the milligrams of THC present in the compound. Distributors would be taxed 50 percent a cent in flower, 8-tenths of a cent in concentrates, and 3 cents in edibles.
Connected: Hashish Authorities Concerned About New York’s Possible THC Potency Excise Tax
Photograph by Kirill Vasikev / EyeEm/Getty Illustrations or photos
Previous 12 months, New York announced its sophisticated tax hashish program that, whilst not the greatest in the region, could be the most sophisticated. Alternatively of tying wholesale tax to factors these as pounds or quantity, New York would url the tax to the sum of THC in a solution.
New York is the first condition to tax hashish this way, with numerous business experts contacting the prepare extremely complex. “I imply it’s excellent that we last but not least have marijuana legalization, but this THC-based tax is some thing that could develop a large amount of challenges,” mentioned Kaelan Castetter, of Castetter Cannabis Team. She argues that this advanced plan could set a new business in a hard location given that it’s just setting up out, when also coping with a pandemic. She predicts the tax could elevate costs, one thing that appears to be the circumstance as we close to the opening of legal cannabis firms.
Picture by Tima Miroshnichenko from Pexels
Associated: Fall The 25% Hashish Tax, Senator Schumer!
Even now, not everybody is upset by New York’s new taxes. “It is an fascinating strategy,” hashish regulation professional Rob DiPisa instructed Syracuse.com. “Clearly New York is paying out interest to the way that THC now drives the value and the expansion in the sector. It might be the first, but I can see this turning out to be a development in other states.”
Other people feel the tax could press cannabis personnel to make strains and cannabis products and solutions that are not so reliant on THC, giving other compounds a chance, and demonstrating persons that there is substantially a lot more to cannabis than that single factor.
Lawful hashish profits could start out by the end of the yr, adhering to a application that ideas to supply cannabis licenses to individuals affected by cannabis-related convictions.


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Restaurants, caterers and pop-ups offering celebratory meals, meal kits, celebration packages and virtual events to ring in 2021.
Feast your eyes on our bountiful list of East Bay restaurants and caterers offering special holiday menus to enjoy at home.
Plus, Cafe Ohlone Sunday Supper dinner boxes; Belotti’s white truffle menu; free pet food at Berkeley shelters and more East Bay food news.
This month, the East Bay welcomed Ono Bakehouse, Black Star Pirate BBQ and 15 new restaurants, and said goodbye to Corso, the Albatross Pub and 13 other food businesses.
We’ve rounded up expertly prepared feasts, make-at-home meal kits, and heat-and-serve meals from 14 restaurants and caterers in the East Bay.
Since the pandemic started, a whole slew of East Bay-based ice cream options have emerged from micro-creameries, restaurants and pop-ups.
Plus, an update on Nick’s Pizza; new izakaya spot in Temescal; La Cocina’s Voices from the Kitchen goes virtual.
Taco & Co., Lion Dance Cafe, Fort Point Rockridge and 12 others opened; The Uptown Nightclub, Trattoria La Siciliana, Tribune Tavern and 12 others permanently closed.
Excluded from opportunities and support given to restaurants during the pandemic, many caterers are trying takeout, meal kits and even a drive-in movie night to survive.
Since COVID-19, Fare Community Kitchen has worked with community partners to make and distribute healthy, scratch-made meals for people in need.
Plus, stone-fired pizzas at Honor; Korean barbecue home delivery from Mama Cho’s and more East Bay food news.
Chow down on barbecue, Basque-style sausages, vegan “pulled pork,” lobster rolls, more.


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Up to 110 million customers, their data was stolen at Target.
The massive data hacking at Target stores over the holiday season across the country, which was much more worse than previously revealed. The previously reported was 40 million Target customers’ credit or debit card information had been taken during a security breach, which was the biggest retail store security breach of all time. During November 27th just right before Thanksgiving to December 15th that was the busiest shopping season of year, all the shoppers in Target could be a victim.
However, Target company said on Friday that more customers had been hacked not only the credit or debit card information, but also their email address, name, phone number, and home address. Up to 70 to 110 million customers’ data was stolen, which was significantly broader than originally reported. Also, it might include its past shoppers that not only who visited the store recently. All people who used debit or credit cards to shop at Target could be a victim. People must check their card right now in order to protect their money. For all the email ask your personal information could be frauds.
“I know that it is frustrating for our guests to learn that this information was taken and we are truly sorry they are having to endure this,” said Target CEO Gregg Steinhafel.
The CEO of Target just said “I am so sorry.” Millions of customers’ security data was stolen in thousands of Target stores, and people need to suck it up. Many people decided to pay cash when they are shopping, so there were no any personal information would be taken.


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Indie darling Torchlight isn’t just a cult hit anymore: It’s an actual hit, reaching “Gold” status with half a million units in the hands of gamers.
Last November, after Runic’s Diablo clone (in the best sense of the word) Torchlight hit shelves to critical acclaim, I spoke with several members of the development team about the game. When I asked if they thought that lower-budget, lower-priced games like Torchlight would become the norm as opposed to big-budget games that needed to sell a million copies just to break even, Runic CEO Max Schaefer responded:
“If we sell a million, we will have more than broken even – we’ll all be very, very happy.”
According to a post on the Runic Games Twitter account, the game is halfway there: As of Sunday, Torchlight has sold half a million copies, giving it “Gold” status. I’m not sure exactly what metric they’re using, but it’s still a landmark for a small indie title all the same.
Part of the appeal is undoubtedly the price: Torchlight is normally $20, but sees frequent sales on Steam as with the sale celebrating the service’s Mac launch.
“We could have sold copies for more, but I think that $20 was the right price,” said Lead Designer Travis Baldree. “It lets us recoup our expenses, and it’s sort of a ‘magical’ price where people can just make the buy without having to fret so much. If their friends tell them, ‘Hey, this is a great game,’ they can make the decision then and there. It’s the cost of a DVD; it’s the cost of a large pizza.”
By the looks of it, plenty of people are finding Torchlight worth the price of a large pizza. Congratulations, guys!


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IO Interactive is now on the market for a potential publisher to pick up. The Hitman developer has been cut loose by Square Enix in a move that will supposedly make up for an "extraordinary loss" of $43 million.
Square Enix made the announcement in a letter to investors in Japan.
To maximize player satisfaction as well as market potential going forward, we are focusing our resources and energies on key franchises and studios. As a result, the Company has regrettably decided to withdraw from the business of IO INTERACTIVE A/S, a wholly‐owned subsidiary and a Danish corporation, as of March 31, 2017
IO Interactive also confirmed the news on Twitter as fans reached out with sympathy.
Square Enix acquired IO Interactive when it bought Eidos back in 2009. Under its umbrella, the studio developed Kane & Lynch 2: Dog Days, Hitman: Absolution, and Hitman.
Hitman was a hit, but not enough
Hitman was one of the most compelling stories of last year, and it was a lot of fun to follow. What started out as a barebones stealth game slow-burned into a full experience that showed some impressive numbers. As a game that started life with the plan of episodic content, Hitman should become the model that all games follow.
However, when Square Enix needs to fill in the gaps in its money, something has to take fall. It's a shame too because we never not a second Freedom Fighters either.
Man, what a great video game. If EA pick up IO Interactive in the sale, the dream could still be alive!


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Tuesday, November 27, 2012
Atlanta-based CARE, Habitat for Humanity and Project GRAD Atlanta are among the nonprofits trying to encourage people to pause in their shopping and find a way to help others.
Will donating to charity ever be as popular as shopping during the holiday season? A partnership of nonprofits hopes so. For many people, the holiday shopping marathon began on Thanksgiving day, with some national chains opening their doors just hours after the traditional turkey dinner. Then comes Black Friday, Small Business Saturday, and Cyber Monday, which has morphed into Cyber Week. Now, there's a new campaign asking you to open your wallet _ Giving Tuesday. The Giving Tuesday website says the effort, coming on the heels of days devoted to consumerism, is designed "to create a national day of giving at the start of the annual holiday season. It celebrates and encourages charitable activities that support nonprofit organizations." …
Sunday, November 25, 2012
Consider making a holiday gift to one of the many philanthropic causes in the Philadelphia area.
The holidays can be a great time to make a charitable donation to a worthwhile cause in the Delaware Valley. Below are some organizations to consider donating to this holiday season. Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation A donation to Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation, based in Wynnewood, helps bring lifesaving treatments to children with cancer. To date, ALSF has funded more than 250 research projects at more than 70 institutions. Boy Scouts of America: Cradle of Liberty Council The Boy Scouts of America: Cradle of Liberty Council, headquartered in Wayne, serves more than 17,000 young people in Philadelphia, Montgomery, and Delaware Counties. Girl Scouts of Eastern Pennsylvania GSEP is the largest girl-serving organization in Pennsylvania and…
Monday, August 27, 2012
A report from The Chronicle of Philanthropy looks at how much neighborhoods in the area give to charity.
- LOCAL CONNECTIONS
- Nate Adams
Monday, August 27, 2012
"How America Gives," a study released by The Chronicle of Philanthropy, aims to “nationwide generosity” by analyzing tax documents and measuring how much money people claimed for charitable donations on their returns. So how charitable is the Greater Philadelphia Area? According to the report, the area’s Patch towns gave over $568,000,000 toward charitable measures in the 2008. “The study is based on exact dollar amounts released by the Internal Revenue Service showing the value of charitable deductions claimed by American taxpayers,” according to a release on the study’s website. The Chronicle obtained comprehensive tax records from the IRS for 2008, the most recent year for which such data are available, to examine income levels and the …
Thursday, January 6, 2011
CHCA's charitable arm supports quality of life on the Hill.
Community groups like Teens Inc. and programs like the Pastorius Park concert series were some of the recipients of almost $100,000 in grant money from the Chestnut Hill Community Fund this past year. The charitable arm of the Chestnut Hill Community Association (CHCA) allocated some $97,085 in 2010 to 22 groups on the Hill and in its environs, Fund president Jean Hemphill said. A charitable trust focused on improving the quality of life in the Chestnut Hill region, the Community Fund was established in 1972 to raise money for some of the CHCA’s programs, such as the Garden District and the parks along Germantown Avenue. Over time it has supported other community organizations, from the Chestnut Hill Center for Enrichment to the various …
Thursday, December 2, 2010
Local businesses get into the holiday spirit by supporting charitable causes.
You don't have to stray far from home to help a good cause this holiday season. The following nine tales document ways Mt. Airy businesses are reaching out and opening their doors this winter to a number of causes. 1. At Walk a Crooked Mile Books at 7423 Devon St., owners Greg Williams and Cynthia Potter believe strongly in the power of "giftless gifts," and recommend that everyone who has too much stuff in their houses donate and give gifts in honor of others this holiday season. The bookstore is working with St. Martin-in-the-Fields Church in Chestnut Hill to collect used and new books for 10 to 17-year old youths who are living in court ordered placement. The drive ends Dec. 12, at which point church volunteers will deliver the books…


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PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — The hunt is on for golden eggs packed with prizes hidden throughout downtown Portland.
The egg hunt started Thursday and will run through Sunday. The Portland Business Alliance said “magical golden eggs” will be hidden throughout the downtown area. Clues to the egg locations will be posted on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter at 11:45 a.m. each day of the hunt.
The first person or group to find the golden egg gets to keep it and wins a so-called “Explorer Package” which contains gift cards and other items from downtown retailers, restaurants and hotels.
Those who take part in the hunt must wear masks and follow safety measures when entering businesses. Participants can only win once and selected packages will require a 21+ ID card.
The egg hunt is sponsored by the Downtown Marketing Initiative, which is part of the Portland Business Alliance.


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Wednesday, February 26, 2014, 6:30PM: Although I am still perplexed about what happened last week, I have some clarity about what will happen tomorrow. Last Thursday, on Grand Rapids Gas Buddy, there were postings of several stations at a new price of $3.65. Then, a few hours later, those postings were gone. Instead, on Saturday morning, we got our third Saturday hike in a row, and of course the new price was … $3.65. Retail prices have been following higher wholesale prices, which we usually see in February, particularly in regions influenced by Chicago. Well, we have a new high for 2014 in wholesale prices tonight, and I calculate the cost to retailers to be $3.59 a gallon. Since prices in and near Grand Rapids are in the $3.44-$3.65 range, we are looking at price hike on Thursday. Estimated new price: $3.75. –Ed A.
Comment on the February 5 prediction: I predicted a Thursday hike, but we ended up with a rare Saturday hike, to $3.49. So, I was WRONG.
Thursday, February 20, 2014, 2:30PM: It has been a difficult game to play this month. We’ve had two rare Saturday hikes (Feb. 8 and 15) due to jumps in the wholesale market on Fridays, while competition in the retail sector has been knocking those hikes back down. Last night, I calculated a price to retailers in Michigan of about $3.40, but prices are all over the place this morning, with a low of $3.32 on Alpine Avenue. As I write this post, there are reports on GasBuddy of a hike to $3.65 at some Speedway’s in town, although the Speedway web site doesn’t show it to be the case. If that is correct, that’s a bit of reach compared to recent price hikes, and that price may not hold up very long.
So, fill up for $3.40 if you can, but I don’t have anything to predict. I do have a reading assignment though: Michigan drivers pay some of the highest taxes in the region on gasoline. -Ed A.
Comment on the January 28 prediction: Right on the money, as prices rose last Thursday to $3.39. CORRECT.
Wednesday, February 5, 2014, 7:45PM: Wholesale prices are right where they were at the last price hike, but retail prices have fallen from $3.39 to as low as $3.13 in Cedar Springs. Seems like it is Thursday Price Hike Time, back to around $3.39 I predict. — Ed A.
Comment on the January 7 prediction: That prediction was CORRECT, as prices rose on January 9 to $3.45. Then, on January 21, we got a lame hike to $3.39.
Tuesday, January 28, 2014, 7:15PM: It has been a quiet month in gasolineland, which is why I haven’t posted much. Wholesale prices have barely budged in two weeks, while retail prices have been ticking lower since the January 21 hike. I think we are setting up for a price reset on Thursday, back in the $3.39 to $3.49 range. — Ed Aboufadel
Comment on the December 23 prediction: It was WRONG, or just early, as the last price hike of 2013 didn’t arrive until the day after Christmas.
Tuesday, January 7, 2014, 7:15PM: Riding the roller coaster that are gas prices, retail prices have been dropping during this deep freeze, but wholesale prices have been rising. We’ve reached the point where the price to retailers is about $3.23, and this afternoon I bought gas for $3.09. You know what that means … price hike coming, Wednesday or Thursday. Estimate of new price: back to $3.49. -EA
Comment on the December 18 prediction; Prices rose on Thursday to $3.29, just as predicted. CORRECT!
Monday, December 23, 2013, 8:00PM: Wholesale prices continue to rise the past several days. Using an estimated wholesale price of $2.61, I am calculating a price to retailers this evening of $3.29, which is where we hiked to last week. With prices down below $3.20 in a lot of places in the GR area, that sets up for a possible price reset on Christmas Eve, to at least $3.39. Hate to make that prediction, but there it is. — Ed A.


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How can we make the food chain more sustainable? Who are the latest food-tech innovators? Will lab-grown meats and alternative proteins become the new normal? The Food’s Future Summit by Foodie will answer all this and more with two days of panels, discussions and keynote speakers from the experts and innovators leading the food industry to a more sustainable, healthier future. Now in its third year, the event will be hosted at Asia Society Hong Kong on October 11th and 12th with speakers, exhibitors and food from some of Hong Kong’s best-loved dining establishments. Check out what to look out for at the Summit, and get your tickets before it sells out.
As you’d expect at a food event, there will be plenty of edible goodies from morning to evening. Saladstop and Beef & Liberty will be providing lunch on Friday and Saturday respectively, while you can expect breakfast from Schragels, a caffeine boost from Redback Coffee, and forward-thinking snacks from Green Monday, and Spicebox Organics.
With over 12 sessions of discussion panels and keynote speakers, there’s truly something for everyone here whether you’re a health-obsessed foodie or part of Hong Kong’s competitive dining scene. The first morning of the Summit will see investors, venture capitalists and top restauranteurs discussing topics like the ‘next big gamble’ and the cutting-edge of the food industry, while the afternoon will explore everyone’s favourite trends, alternative proteins and superfoods, along with sci-fi sounding topics like AI, data and robotics in hospitality.
On the second day (Saturday 12th), topics range from sustainability to blockchain in the food industry to the impact of the wellness industry on consumers: look out for Compare Retreats’ Editor & CCO Rebecca Cairns on the “NamasTaste – The New Age of Conscious Consumers” panel. With appearances from people like Hong Kong nutritionist Michelle Lau, Michelin-star chef and Netflix’s ‘The Final Table’ favourite Shane Osborn, and Oatly Inventor Rickard Öste, you don’t want to miss out on these food-centric discussions.
The Food’s Future Summit has been a leader in food innovation in Asia since its launch, and this year is no different, with the new and expanded ‘Innovation Showcase’ where food-tech companies will be demonstrating and giving tastings of their latest products and dishes. This year, Hong Kong-based food-tech company Avant Meats will be unveiling the first cell-cultured fish maw worldwide, while Californian-based startup Good Idea will unveil its blood sugar-balancing soft drinks to help negate that post-meal energy lull. Green Monday will be rolling out it’s latest rendition of the Beyond Meat sandwich at the Summit, while Alchemy Foodtech will be showing off its low-GI ‘rice’.
Cocktails & Conversations
Co-hosted with Global:SF, guests can join for a little post-Summit reception where the discussions will continue with high-tech drinks and innovative canapés. Chef Tanya Holland of Brown Sugar Kitchen, Chef Brandon Jew of Michelin-starred Mr Jiu’s, and Chef Belinda Leong of B. Patisserie will be joining for a fireside chat, and guests can expect to sample cocktails from Glyph, the world’s first molecular whisky, and snacks using ingredients like Omnipork, microgreens from Urban Grow, and aquaponic edible plants from Farm 66. Tickets for the cocktail reception can be purchased separately here.
Food’s Future Summit will take place on October 11th and 12th at the Asia Society Hong Kong. Get your tickets here.


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Out with Heine Brothers, in with Comfy Cow
With plans to open a long-sought new location in the Highlands, Louisville ice cream maven Tim Koons-McGee wanted to build up suspense. The co-owner of The Comfy Cow Inc. planned to set up a Facebook event asking fans to guess where the newest Comfy Cow would go.
But it’s hard to keep secrets. The word got out.
“For a big town, (Louisville is) a small town,” Koons-McGee said. He confirmed that Comfy Cow is set to move into 1449 Bardstown Road.
That site at the corner of Eastern Parkway and Bardstown Road currently houses a Heine Brothers’ Coffee shop, but the Louisville coffee company has decided against renewing its lease. While the location is popular and highly visible, Heine Brothers’ also operates a number of other stores within minutes of the intersection. Its last day there is March 16.
Heine Brothers’ Coffee Inc. co-founder Mike Mays approached Comfy Cow about taking the spot.
“He wanted to make sure there was a good local business in there,” Koons-McGee said.
Chip Hamm, the attorney for and an investor in The Comfy Cow Inc., declined to give specifics about the lease agreement but said the company only accepts lease deals of at least 10 years.
Because the building is in good shape, he said, Comfy Cow will pay for needed renovations.
“This space doesn’t require a lot of work,” Hamm said.
Hamm and Koons-McGee would not disclose projected renovation costs.
The Highlands Comfy Cow is expected to open in early May. But Koons-McGee knows weather can impact an opening.
Caitlin Bowling covers these beats: Restaurants, retail, human resources, and women & minority affairs.
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Disruption panel: Dentists need to adapt to changing profession
September 06, 2019
Disrupting dentistry: Marko Vujicic, Ph.D., chief economist and vice president of the ADA Health Policy Institute, makes a point during the Thursday panel discussion. He is joined by panelists Dr. Lou Shuman, center, CEO of Cellerant Consulting Group, and Tom Seery, founder and CEO of RealSelf. Photos by EZ Event Photography
Is disruption the new normal for dentistry?
Based on a panel discussion held Thursday, the answer is clear-cut: yes.
From shifting patient and provider demographics and changing consumer expectations to the fast-evolving technological advances, dentists and the profession should be prepared to anticipate and adapt.
ADA President Jeffrey M. Cole moderated the Is Disruption the New Normal for Dentistry? discussion, which involved Marko Vujicic, Ph.D., chief economist and vice president of the ADA Health Policy Institute; Dr. Lou Shuman, CEO of Cellerant Consulting Group; and Tom Seery, founder and CEO of RealSelf, an online resource that connect patients with doctors.
"The business and practice of dentistry is constantly changing, and changing dramatically," Dr. Cole said, welcoming about 300 attendees. "From the effects of consumerism resulting in on-demand services like Uber and Lyft, and in our field, do-it-your dentistry and mail order orthodontics to some of the most exciting advances in science and technology."
Other disruptors include economic pressures to drive costs down, professional uncertainty when nondentists conduct dentistry and outside influences such as third-party payers and regulators.
The panel, however, presented practical ways for dentists to address these disruptions and make their practices more consumer friendly.
For example, Dr. Vujicic said, providers can offer appointment booking online to make the process more convenient for patients.
"Who here still calls restaurants to make a reservation?" he said, adding that that was not the case not too long ago. Dentists can adapt that into their practice.
Panelists added that some larger dental companies also are bringing dental care directly to patients through visiting workplaces with mobile dental or hygiene units.
Mr. Seery encouraged dentists to be more engaged with their patients through social media, providing information about their services and practice.
Disruptors task dentists and organized dentistry leaders to continue to drive the profession forward in the most positive manner, Dr. Cole said.
"Disruption can be a good thing," he said. "It forces new ways of doing business, awakens us to new opportunities, pushes us to take risks and drives innovations that make us better."


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Bethesda’s Senior Marketing and Communications Vice President, Pete Hines, has taken to Twitter to share his thoughts about the PlayStation 5 DualSense controller.
Yesterday we already covered some tweets from Naughty Dog Audio Lead, Robert Krekel, who said that the DualSense will allow for some interesting opportunities for integrating audio with the controller’s new haptic feedback tech. In addition, Ready at Dawn founder Andrea Pessino said that the controller is "pure awesomeness". Today, Bethesda’s Pete Hines has also shared to be rather impressed with the PS5 controller.
According to Hines, players will almost immediately forget about using the PS4’s DualShock 4 controller after having used the DualSense.
“You sort of immediately forget about a PS4 controller”, he wrote on Twitter when asked how the new controller feels. “I went back and forth between them and you immediately just want to use the PS5.”
Having tried the PlayStation 5 DualSense in advance, Hines shared his enthusiasm about the controller and said to be quite impressive with the new adaptive triggers and haptic feedback tech.
“I've gotten to try the haptic feedback and adaptive triggers on this thing and was very impressed”, he said. “I think games are gonna do some really cool things with them.”
To feel the tension of player action, Sony has incorporated adaptive L2 and R2 triggers of the DualSense controller. In addition, the DualSense uses Immersion's haptic feedback tech for a more immersive gameplay experience - tech that will make games come to life, according to Immersion.
"Research shows that haptics makes games come to life, increasing players’ satisfaction and enjoyment through peripherals and games enhanced with the power of touch,” said Ramzi Haidamus, Immersion’s CEO last year.
More recently, Haidamus said that he believes that Sony's upcoming PlayStation 5 controller will drive demand for advanced interactive haptic experiences.
More about the new DualSense and the upcoming PS5 will be revealed in the coming months.


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News stories featuring Telenor:
July 7th, 2014
Participants in The Hungarian Mobile Wallet Association’s MobilTarca NFC pilot made 41,000 payments valued at more than 120 million HUF (US$525,000) during the first 12 months of the trial, the association has revealed. Users also…
February 7th, 2014
The NFC mobile wallet being tested by Hungarian carriers Magyar Telekom, Vodafone and Telenor with MasterCard, OTP Bank and loyalty scheme operator SuperShop is expanding its range of services to include ticketing for live events…
November 27th, 2013
Eight out of ten testers of the Hungarian mobile wallet pilot project have found the service “very useful” prompting the Hungarian Mobile Wallet Association — an alliance between mobile network operators Magyar Telekom, Vodafone and…
November 19th, 2013
July 31st, 2013
Norwegian telco Telenor‘s Valyou NFC mobile wallet is set for a commercial launch during the third quarter of 2013, in conjunction with banking group DNB. TSM Nordic, jointly owned by Telenor and DNB, will act as…
July 9th, 2013
The Hungarian Mobile Wallet Association, an alliance between mobile network operators Magyar Telekom, Vodafone and Telenor with MasterCard, OTP Bank and SuperShop, is launching a pilot to test a new NFC mobile payment solution in…
February 26th, 2013
The carrier has partnered with DNB bank for the launch of the NFC payments service in Norway and is demonstrating the new solution at Mobile World Congress 2013.
November 19th, 2012
Denmark’s four mobile network operators have formed a joint venture company to introduce mobile payments and a three phase rollout programme that will “eventually” evolve to include support for NFC.
August 27th, 2012
Hungary’s State Printing House, Állami Nyomda, has announced it has been selected as Telenor Hungary‘s technical partner for NFC. Telenor Hungary is preparing to test NFC payments and loyalty services and is to participate in the Hungarian Mobile…
July 6th, 2012
“Mobile payment is something that people want and will use, if the solutions are adequate,” says Telenor’s Viktoria Erngard. “But in order to succeed in the long run, we need to get as many merchants on board as possible and offer more NFC-enabled phones.”
June 29th, 2012
WyWallet offers 97% of Swedish mobile phone users the ability to make funds transfers, online and SMS payments today and will include support for NFC payments from 2013.
January 17th, 2012
4T Sverige, the joint venture company set up by Sweden’s four mobile network operators, is to launch a mobile payments service that works with 97% of current phones and also provides support for NFC.
November 21st, 2011
Swedish mobile operators Telia, Tele2, Telenor and 3 have formed a mobile payments joint venture. The new company plans to launch a mobile wallet by mid-2012 which will allow Swedes to pay for services such as public transportation and parking. All operators will offer the same product, making it easier for customers to switch providers.
November 16th, 2011
The mobile network operators have signed up to support and implement SIM-based NFC in a move the GSMA says will “promote the global interoperability of services and accelerate time-to-market”.
October 17th, 2011
October 10th, 2011
Hungary’s three mobile network operators — Magyar Telekom, Telenor Magyarország and Vodafone Magyarország — have held a press event to jointly promote the benefits of NFC payments, reports the Budapest Business Journal. The mobile companies should team up with banks, Magyar Telekom boss Christopher Mattheisen told those attending the meeting.
July 25th, 2011
Magyar Telekom, Telenor and Vodafone have joined with MasterCard, OTP Bank and loyalty programme operator SuperShop to establish the Hungarian Mobile Wallet Association with the aim of developing a technical and operational infrastructure for NFC services in Hungary.
July 4th, 2011
The Norwegian bank and mobile network operator have contracted Giesecke & Devrient to provide them with a turnkey NFC solution for a mobile payments trial that will involve a dozen merchant locations in Oslo.
June 23rd, 2011
“Everything we currently physically have in our wallet or purse will soon be available digitally on our SIM card,” say TDC, Telenor, TeliaSonera and 3.
World’s leading mobile operators commit to NFC — with the SIM as the secure element and the operators in control
February 21st, 2011
The GSMA has issued a statement outlining a commitment by leading global mobile network operators — many of whom have not previously been involved in NFC — to launch commercial services in 2012. “The operator community is focused on driving the standardised deployment of mobile NFC, using the SIM as the secure element to provide authentication, security and portability,” says the announcement.
Feed for stories featuring Telenor.
• Find a list of all the companies and other organisations that have been featured in NFC World+ in our directory.


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Bring your biggest purse or wallet to the next Wild game you attend if you plan on tipping back a beer or two.
According to the Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal, the Wild has the most expensive beer in the NHL. The average cost of a 20-ounce plastic cup of beer is $9.50 -- tied with the New York Islanders and Anaheim Ducks for the highest beer prices in the league.
When it comes to value, the Wild isn't the worst offender. The New York Rangers charge $8.75 for a 12-ounce cup. Fans that really want to get their money's worth should head to the Nation's capital, where the Washington Capitals pour 24-ounces of beer for just $8.
SaveOnBrew.com notes that the average beer sold at an NHL arena costs 48 cents per ounce. That's the equivalent of a regular six-pack costing a mind-boggling $34.56.


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Post a New Topic
Beer garden brewing up nicely
Original post made
on Jan 2, 2013
An ambitious plan to open a beer garden is becoming reality downtown at the corner of Villa and Bryant streets. Steins Beer Garden proprietor Ted Kim said the revamp of the building he is leasing at 895 Villa is costing nearly $2 million and may be complete in February.
Read the full story here Web Link
posted Friday, December 28, 2012, 3:56 PM


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Back in November 2011 I highlighted just why the Apple patent war needed to stop. Well nonetheless that war is still going on. So this week we have some news that is good, bad and just ugly. Where to begin? Well lets start with bad, in the land down under, Australia. Apple has brought a whopping 278 claims against Samsung in an Australian court – 278! The Australian reports the Apple has added 278 complaints against Samsung. 72 involve patents and 10 involve Smartphone and Tablets products Samsung has yet to release in Australia . Although Apple won an injunction against Samsung back in November 2011, it has since been overturned. Samsung’s top lawyer involving the suits, Neil Young (anyone else suddenly picture the American rock singer?) says that do to the short notice of the latest law suit, Samsung will not be able to file defense until the middle of May 2012 at the earliest. This could have a major negative impact on Samsung’s sales in Australia.
Now for some good news – or ugly news, depending on how you look at it. Motorola has won a permanent injunction against Apples iCloud product in a German court. The decision was handed down in the Mannheim Regional Court by judge Andreas Vass. Apples iCloud being a cloud-based service, infringes on a “multiple pager status synchronization system and method,” owned by Motorola. Motorola also won a case against Apple involving one of Motorola’s European 3G/UMTS patent. Since then, Apple has pulled the iPhone 3G, iPhone 3GS, and iPhone 4 from its German online store along with any 3G/UMTS enabled iPad’s it has. This move came from a ruling handed down in December 2011. Motorola went all out against Apple to ensure the ruling was enforced. This will hurt Apples sales in Germany.
About Benny Sabghir: Born and raised in Brooklyn, NY. Benny enjoys all aspects of consumer electronics - especially writing about it. He also enjoys hitting the gym, running and discussing the history of his three favorite wars - The American Revolution, The Six-Day War, and the Star Wars Trilogy. Currently in Jerusalem, Israel. Follow him on twitter @Sabghir_Benny Find him on Google+ View author profile.


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- MEDIA CENTER
Southwest China's Guizhou province aims to upgrade big data development by reforming its digital industry, digital integration, digital infrastructure, digital governance and digital ecosystem, according to a news conference held on Nov 8.
Guizhou's "Research and application of key technologies in sponge city" project being developed by China Communications Construction recently won the GRAA, becoming the first sponge city project to achieve the feat.
As Southwest China's Guizhou province continues to improve the business environment for cross-border e-commerce, its goods are increasingly being exported overseas through e-commerce and the expanding international market.
Since the beginning of this year, Southwest China's Guizhou province has been devoted to the attraction, construction and operation of major projects to boost economic development in the province.
Since the beginning of this year, Southwest China's Guizhou province has made every effort to stabilize economic growth, achieved stable production and supply growth and balanced market demands.
Over the past decade, the added value of Guizhou's private economy increased by a factor of four, according to a news conference held on Sept 1.
With advantages in big data development, Southwest China's Guizhou province has been using digital technologies to help the real economy transform and upgrade.


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Multiple Surrey Wilko stores are set to remain open, but it is unclear for how long, as more than 50 branches across the nation will close their doors for good this coming week. Recently, administrators announced that 52 branches of the long running high street retailer would be permanently shutting, including two right here in Surrey.
On Tuesday, September 5 it was confirmed that 24 branches will shut for good on September 12, with the remaining 28 stores due to close two days later. This will lead to the loss of over 1,000 jobs nationwide, as well as hundreds of further job losses affecting warehouse and service centre staff.
The two Surrey branches confirmed to be closing this coming week are in Woking and Camberley, with nearby Aldershot also shutting its doors. The stores in Aldershot and Camberley will close first on September 12 while the Woking store will close a few days later, with doors shutting on September 14.
This announcement closely followed the confirmation that rival B&M would buy up to 51 Wilko stores in a deal costing around £13 million. However, it has not yet been confirmed exactly which Wilko branches would be saved, leaving the future of the retailer’s 300 remaining stores hanging in the balance.
This means that the fate of the other four Surrey branches currently remains unclear, but at this moment they have no immediate plans to close.
The four Surrey Wilko branches still at risk of closure that may be bought by B&M:
Epsom, 78-80 High Street, KT19 8BA
Redhill, 3-7 High Street, RH1 1RD
Staines, Unit 2SB, Two Rivers Shopping Park, TW18 4WB
Walton, 11/15 Bridge Street, KT12 1AE
Wilko stores to close on September 12
Cardiff Bay Retail Park
Liverpool Edge Lane
Wilko stores to close on September 14
Barrow in Furness
Queen Street Cardiff
Get more news from SurreyLive straight to your inbox for free here.


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SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF) — This Valentine’s Day, say ‘I love you’ with a hissing cockroach.
The San Francisco Zoo has come up with a warm way for jilted lovers to show their dis-affection –- hissing cockroaches and giant hairy scorpions.READ MORE: KPIX Reporters Remember Slain Security Guard Kevin Nishita; 'Just the Kindest Man'
For a fee, you can adopt one of these lovely critters in the name of your current or soon-to-be ex-lover. The zoo can use the money to further the Zoological Society’s mission, so consider it a win-win. You’ve turned that relationship gone sour into a positive.READ MORE: UPDATE: News Crew Security Guard Shot in Oakland Dies From Injuries; Photo of Suspect Vehicle Released
For those who are still smitten on V-Day, the zoo is offering more cuddly adoption alternatives such as the red panda, an African lion, even a ring-tailed lemur.MORE NEWS: Burlingame Shoppers Show Up for Small Business Saturday
For better or for worse, adoptions don’t actually include the critter. For prices and more information, visit the San Francisco Zoo’s website.


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It was in September of this year that WLDKAT, a brand that deals in affordable skin care, reintroduced itself to its audience. A CBD-based product that was first launched at the beginning of the pandemic. CBD was the key ingredient in the product.
It's been reported that the ingredient has been eliminated altogether in its second iteration, leading to a decline in product prices of roughly $4-$6 per product. It was announced yesterday that WLDKAT would be available exclusively at Ultra Beauty starting the second week of July regardless of whether the brand would have launched there.
With regards to the Farm Bill's passage in 2018, many people interpreted it as an indication that more CBD products would be coming to the market in the near future. There are no shortage of beauty journalists who will testify that they've discovered their inboxes were flooded with pitches about CBD products between 2018 and 2019 and they've already experienced a blizzard of pitches.
The US market was flooded with products containing CBD, including skin care products. CBD-containing products have yet to change significantly, in part due to limitations that still exist that make it more difficult for them to be sold, indicating that the expected change hasn't taken place. Even four years after the expected changes were expected to take place, entrepreneurs are singing a different tune today.
There are various channels through which CBD can be marketed; it can be sold online, and it can be shipped internationally, using After Pay, Pay Pal, Apple Pay, and Klara - all of which do not support CBD - and having to pay more for each payment made through your website makes it increasingly challenging to sell it online.
"I believe it is an effective ingredient for skin care as well as something that can be introduced to reduce joint inflammation through consumption." WLDKAT's CEO Amy Zunzunegui says, "Out of all the work, even getting your business off the ground is a lot of work." Even though the industry has been legalized, the commerce side of the business is still in its infancy."
A possibility has been identified by WLDKAT that some of its customers may have been confused because of this mistake. To Zunzunegui, one of the most frequent questions asked about the brand is whether or not it is creating a high due to the CBD. The retail salesperson mentioned that the product is still polarizing amongst consumers as a result of its pure natural components.
Shea Marie, who is also the co-founder and influencer of The Fee list, has voiced many of the concerns that I have above. This week, Fee list announced that three products will be infused with CBD, including creams and bath salts that will be available on the Fee list website by August of 2020. Despite the fact that CBD-infused beauty products still exist, the company has decided to focus its efforts on CBD-free skin-care products out of concern about the sales and marketing of CBD-infused products in the skin care market.
While this CBD oil is the company's most popular seller, it still contained 500 milligrams of CBD, and has kept its prominence on the market for many years. Despite the CBD being present in only one of Marianne's products, she explained that the brand's success has not been hampered by the inclusion of the CBD.
When the oil was used on people's skin, the skin changed into different types of skin. I was so touched by the before and after pictures and the testimonials," said Marie. Following customer feedback, the company decided to focus more on skincare for the face.
"It is not necessary that you apply CBD to your skin in layers to gain its benefits." In other words, it is possible to include CBD in a single facial oil in order to get all of the benefits of this ingredient. Marie does not hesitate to release products such as its Total Package Youth Protecting Serum without CBD because she realizes the benefits that are associated with CBD. It is illegal to sell you CBD as a toner, a serum, or a cream, and anyone trying to do so will just be taking advantage of you."
In addition to Zunzunegui's point that CBD was never meant to define their brands, both Marie and Zunzunegui also stated that they did not expect CBD to become a problem for them. Several businesses have had their CBD sales limited through Shopify, for example, which has forced them to concentrate on their e-commerce business. Our consultant said that the cost of developing a custom Shopify site would be about ten times, or even one hundred times, more than the cost of a regular Shopify site.
It is also critical to keep in mind that pay-per-click advertisements can be problematic. The greatest hurdle that we face at the moment is paid advertising such as Facebook, Instagram, and Google, as these platforms offer paid advertisements. Unfortunately, none of these platforms allows us to advertise. Because of this, it has grown into an ongoing nightmare since the skin care industry requires a great deal of marketing knowledge in order to succeed.
It is an extremely competitive industry, which makes it even more challenging. In simple terms, if you own a company that sells CBD-infused products, and you are not able to advertise your products on the world's most influential platforms, you are going to lose market share to your competitors and let them grow at the expense of you. Marie had said, "You can't follow the example that they have set.”
In fact, it has just been extremely difficult", Marie explains, of releasing one new formula containing CBD that the company recently released. But Marie and Alexandra Vreeland both liked the CBD formulation so much, they decided to wait "until we see what happens in the industry first," Marie continues. The CBD campaign isn't over yet, Marie says. The campaign is still going strong."


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After weeks of relentless strength, the early year rally at last took a breather. China growth fears helped to fuel the bears' intervention. As we look to the week ahead, it will be interesting to see if stocks are able to shake off these concerns and regain their footing.
The past few weeks have been rough for FXI. Over the past month, the fund fell more than 5%. Recently, on
ETF Profits, I noted that Thailand may be a more attractive option for aggressive investors looking to venture into Asia at this time. During the same period, the
iShares MSCI Thailand Investable Market Index Fund(THD) has held up well, returning over 3% gains.
VelocityShares Daily 2x VIX Short Term ETN(TVIX) (TVIX)
In recent months, I've been following the wild day-to-day swings in the premium-laden
iPath Dow Jones UBS Natural Gas Subindex Total Return ETN(GAZ). TVIX is another product that has been dealing with a substantial disconnect in the weeks since Credit Suisse announced that it was suspending share creation.
When I've discussed premiums in the past, I've mentioned that those left holding a product like TVIX or GAZ when normal share creation is restored are the ones that will be taken for a loop. Sure enough, this week, we watched this development unfold.
Near the end of the weekend, reports that Credit Suisse was planning to restart share creation caused TVIX to drop dramatically. On Thursday, the ETN retreated towards its underlying index, resulting in a single day loss of nearly 30%. This tumble occurred even as the VIX and other volatility-tracking products like the iPath
S&P 500 VIX Short Term Futures ETN(VXX) pushed higher. On Friday, the pain continued, sending the fund trading down more than 20%.
Investors should not be playing around with disconnected products like TVIX and GAZ. Steer clear.
SPDR S&P Retail ETF(XRT)
Next week's economic calendar is busy with the third fourth-quarter GDP revision and durable goods report on tap. Consumers will also be focused on March's consumer confidence data that is being released. Questions have weighed on this corner of the economy throughout the opening quarter of the year. However, in looking at the relentless strength seen from XRT, it is clear that shoppers remain resilient.
Investors will get another glimpse into the state of the retail industry this week when consumer electronics giant
Best Buy (BBY) steps up to the earnings plate.


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South Africa will feel the impact of the Russia-Ukraine conflict on food prices but is also primed to benefit from it through maize exports, experts said on Tuesday.
Commodity prices, including wheat and corn, have surged since Russia began its invasion of Ukraine on February 24. Russia and Ukraine account for about 29% and 19% of global wheat and maize exports, respectively.
With Ukraine’s ports closed and much of the Russian grain supply frozen by Western sanctions, there are fears tightening supplies will lead to shortages in importing countries.
South Africa, a net exporter of maize, another name for corn, imports about 40% of its wheat, but Agriculture Business Chamber Chief Economist Wandile Sihlobo said shortages were unlikely.
“In South Africa, the near-term impact of this war is through price transmission and not the limitation on the commodities’ availability,” Sihlobo said in a weekly note.
Last year, the country harvested 16.315 million tonnes of maize, its second-biggest crop on record. Official data released last week forecast an 11% decline in output this year, but the projected 14.528 million tonnes is still in excess of domestic consumption.
For wheat, data from Grain SA shows South Africa had imported 40% of its import requirements by February 25 and none of it came from Russia or Ukraine.
South Africa imported wheat from Lithuania, Argentina, Poland, Australia, Latvia and the United States.
“The conflict has an impact on the international wheat prices which ultimately reflect in the SA wheat prices as well,” Grain SA economist Luan van der Walt explains.
He said South Africa could benefit from maize exports if supplies from Ukraine remain curtailed.
“In many cases, SA has to compete with especially Ukraine in terms of maize exports. Therefore, it could present even more maize export opportunities for SA,” van der Walt said.
In the video below from February 24, 2022, Chief Economist at the Agricultural Business Chamber of South Africa, Wandile Sihlobo, speaks about the impact on soft commodities like maize and wheat:


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A BUSINESSMAN who is going ahead with a sex shop despite protests from nearby residents and traders claims it will improve standards.
The Love Boutique is the brainchild of former BT engineer Andrew Berry, 33, a businessman from Northwich who believes Crewe is the ideal location for his new venture.
Selling sex toys, raunchy outfits and adult films, the shop will be based in former TV repair premises at 100 Nantwich Road.
Father-of-three Mr Berry said: 'The shop will stand out with its bright pink design, but so do many other shops along Nantwich Road.
'But there will be nothing in the window to make families cringe with embarrassment when they walk past it.
'The typical image of a sex shop is boarded up windows and dark colours and the aim was to get away from that sleazy look and make it an attractive place where couples and singles will want to look round.
'There's nothing sleazy about me. I'm a businessman.
'And no matter what people may think of them, sex shops are legal. Sex is big business.
'There is definitely a gap in the market in Crewe.
'With only one sex shop in the borough, it has the monopoly. Unless local people travel to Chester or Stoke-on-Trent they are deprived of choice and value for money.
'Another shop will improve standards.'
But protesters, who objected at a licensing committee meeting last week, say the Love Boutique will not improve the image of Nantwich Road where millions of pounds are being spent on revamping it as the Gateway to Crewe.
Borough councillor Ray Stafford said: 'As a Christian I am against the shop. There's already one in Crewe and many local people believe the same as me, there's no place for a second.'
Mr Berry, who currently manages sex shops in Stockport and Preston, is taking on staff for his Love Boutique which will open towards the end of the month.


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Most application development today starts with the assumption that a cloud or web application is the right way to go. This is often the right answer – and it’s a mindset we have within our own team – but there is still a place for desktop applications.
Several Internet of Things future trends have emerged that will shape IoT in 2018. These trends are developing and taking hold quickly, so businesses cannot afford the “wait and see” approach. IoT thought leaders suggest you get started now with pilot projects. You need to be aware of these top Internet of Things future trends and how they can impact your business.
Agile product development within enterprises grew to 59% in 2017, more than doubling the rate of adoption from two years earlier. Forrester predicts this adoption will continue to grow during 2018 as more developers embrace Agile product development.


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Bison Trails launches QT protocol to help developers build on Libra
November 25, 2020
What Crypto Winter? Blockchain Developers are Still Making a Killing
January 12, 2019
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December 11, 2017
At Bcdaily.net we provide you with the latest Bitcoin news. We provide you with the latest breaking news and videos straight from the bitcoin crypto industry.


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– Mar. 11th 2021 1:31 pm ET
GM has revealed today the latest developments with its next-gen lithium-metal battery cell prototypes and announced a new joint-venture with SolidEnergy Systems.
During Washington Post’s Live virtual conference today, General Motors President Mark Reuss revealed more details about GM’s next-generation Ultium battery chemistry.
The automaker announced:
“GM’s lithium metal battery with a protected anode will feature a combination of affordability, high performance and energy density. The initial prototype batteries have already completed 150,000 simulated test miles at research and development labs at GM’s Global Technical Center in Warren, Michigan, demonstrating real-world potential.”
GM released a few pictures of those pouch battery cell prototypes:
Along with the new details on the battery cells, GM announced a joint development agreement with SolidEnergy System, a lithium metal battery company that GM invested in years ago:
“GM Ventures was an early investor six years ago in SES, a research, development and manufacturing leader of Li-Metal technology and AI-powered battery management software to optimize performance and safety. The 2015 investment was the start of a close working relationship between SES and General Motors’ research and development organization.”
More concretely, the new joint venture will result in a manufacturing prototyping line to be built in Woburn, Massachusetts, and they aim for it to lead to “a high-capacity, pre-production battery by 2023.”
Reuss commented on GMs next-gen Ultium battery chemistry:
“Affordability and range are two major barriers to mass EV adoption. With this next-generation Ultium chemistry, we believe we’re on the cusp of a once-in-a-generation improvement in energy density and cost. There’s even more room to improve in both categories, and we intend to innovate faster than any other company in this space.”
GM is touting higher energy density with the new cells, which could result in electric vehicles with longer range or more efficient EVs with smaller battery packs.
SES and GM’s collaboration on Li-Metal has already created a lot of intellectual property, including 49 patents granted and 45 patents pending.
While GM is already looking at the next generation Ultium batteries, the first vehicles using the current new battery technology and powertrain system are coming this year starting with the Hummer EV.
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Carey Institute to Host Source NY Regional Launch Gathering
Farmers, Beverage Producers Invited to Free Platform Demo and Training Session
Rensselaerville, N.Y. — Farmers, craft beverage producers and other industry stakeholders from across the Capital Region are invited to attend the regional launch of Source NY. The free gathering will take place at the Carey Institute for Global Good on March 30, 2017 from 11:00 AM to 2:00 PM.
Source NY was created by the Carey Institute’s Sustainable Communities Program in partnership with Sourcemap, Inc and with funding from NYS Empire State Development Corporation’s Craft Beverage Market Grant. It is a digital platform designed to connect farmers and craft beverage producers across New York State.
“After a year of working on this project, we are excited to finally get it out to the industry,” said Sustainable Communities Manager, Rebecca Platel. “There has been a significant amount of investment into local and regional food systems in recent years. Having a tool that allows you to visualize new value chains that are emerging helps demonstrate and measure the impact of those efforts.”
The need for Source NY emerged after the passage of the Farm Brewery Bill by Governor Andrew M. Cuomo in 2012, which requires licensees to source 20% of their hops and malt from in-state growers. The percentage will increase to 60% in 2019.
“The farm brewing license has been hugely impactful to the Agricultural industry in New York State, but the growth has not come without challenges,” says Paul Leone, NYS Brewers Association President. “Like a puzzle, the brewing industry needs to fit with the agricultural industry in a way that synchronizes the efforts of all involved, and we feel Source NY is the key to making those critical connections between growers and brewers to help the industry continue with its tremendous growth and success.”
In addition to a searchable directory of farmers, beverage producers, processors and other industry service providers, users can post advertisements as well as create supply chains maps to share the story of their products with consumers. Supply chain mapping has become increasingly relevant in the food and beverage sector as consumer interest in local food continues to grow.
“Sourcemap is built on the belief that consumers have a right to know where products come from and how they’re made so that they can make sustainable purchasing decisions,” said Founder and CEO of Sourcemap, Leo Bonani. “Source NY is a unique opportunity to not only help consumers dedicated to supporting local business, but to help connect farmers and producers across the New York State craft beverage industry to grow a thriving local economy. We are thrilled to be working with the Carey Institute to bring Source NY to life.”
The event will include a demonstration of how the platform functions as well as training sessions on how to register, make marketplace connections and create your own supply chain maps. To create a visual story of your local supply chain, you can sign up here to be on the map.
Registration is required to attend the free launch. Email Greg Back or call (518) 797-5100 to sign up.
The Carey Institute for Global Good is a not-for-profit organization founded in 2012 by Wm. Polk Carey and is dedicated to making the world better by contributing to a strong, educated and just society. Through its programs, the Institute strives to bring together innovative and dynamic people from around the world to seek creative solutions to the most pressing challenges of the day.