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No makeup? No problem!
After stunning in the front row of the Christian Dior runway show at Paris Fashion Week, Jennifer Lawrence rocked a more laid-back look at Montreal airport on Tuesday -- where she wasn't wearing makeup.
Dressed head to toe in all black (save for some pink toes on her snazzy shoes) and sporting a fresh face, the 22-year-old actress returned to Canada to continue filming "X-Men: Days of Future Past."
We gotta give it to her, J-Law still looks pretty good after a seven-hour flight, right?
Earlier this week, Jennifer showed another patch of bare skin -- as she flaunted her fit stomach at the Dior show.
Jennifer has clearly been working out, probably to slip into her very revealing Mystique costume for the next mutant movie.
Check out more stars without makeup above -- they don't all look as good as Miss Lawrence!


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A local Kum and Go worker, who asked for anonymity for the sake of her job, said Kum and Go will no longer carry non-menthol or tobacco-flavored Juul pods when the inventory runs out. After the flavored pods run out, prospects should legally purchase them via the Juul website. But the nationwide deterrence of vaping has been in action for a yr. According to Juul’s web site, final November it stopped the sale and distribution of its flavored pods to convenience stores across the nation. This ban stopped the distribution of pods, but with so many shipped to retailers only now are they beginning to run out.
Rather, it says it has simply determined that nows the time to selectively enforce its power towards some flavored pods — flavored pods like mint, but not menthol. Juul stated Thursday it’s going to cease accepting retail and on-line orders for mint pods within the U.S. after absorbing the latest outcomes of multiple studies, including the 2019 National Youth Tobacco Survey. That examine found “disturbing charges of e-cigarette use amongst each middle and high school students in 2019” and found that a majority of such users consumed Juul products. There’s little concrete data on the security of ingredients in e-cigarettes. In the US, to legally sell vapes and e-juice, corporations have to supply an ingredient list to the FDA—but they don’t need to make these lists public. As long because the elements are generally thought to be secure by the FDA for use in meals, medicine, and cosmetics, the group then authorizes these merchandise on the market.
Juul Pods 4pk: Mango
In a press release, the corporate mentioned it’ll “continue to develop scientific proof to help using these flavored products,” which it says helps grownup people who smoke stop conventional cigarettes. The e-cigarette business comes beneath risk from a Trump administration proposal to ban most flavored e-cigarette cartridges amid growing well being issues and a warning issued by the CDC towards utilizing the merchandise. Each pack comes with 4 Eonsmoke prefilled tobacco flavor nicotine salt pods. Each pod incorporates 60mg (6%) / 40mg (four%) nicotine per 1mL, and equivalent to 1 cigarette pack. Enjoy as much as 300 puffs per cartridge with your Eonsmoke or Juul pod vaporizer.
There are many adults who, like me, bummed lots of cigarettes once they were young and careworn or ingesting but, after they received older, either principally or fully stopped. Adding to Juul’s woes, the e-cigarette business has been under intense scrutiny since a mysterious vaping-associated illness, now often known as EVALI, unfold throughout the US, sickening almost Vape Pens 1,500 folks and killing 33.
Pods For Juul
- JUUL is available in a variety of flavors, similar to fruit medley, mango, cool cucumber and creme brulee.
- But the company is underneath intense strain to crack down on vapes.
- At the identical time, it stays on the mercy of the Food and Drug Administration, which has regulated tobacco merchandise since 2009.
- The company’s valuation rose to sixteen billion dollars over the summer season; it now controls nearly three-quarters of the e-cigarette market within the U.S.
You’ll get a pack’s value of puffs from each pod, which is 200 puffs. Customers might order as much as fifteen packs of pods every month. Only two different states — Massachusetts and New Jersey — have accredited related state rules on flavored tobacco or vaping merchandise.
The bill has garnered support from teams together with the NAACP and the state’s Legislative Black Caucus. At a information conference last week, advocates argued that flavored tobacco products disproportionately have an effect on minority and lower-revenue youth. In distinction, the proposed Maryland invoice would come with all tobacco products and ban any with flavoring, even menthol cigarettes. Under the law, distributors may obtain as much as a $1,000 fantastic and/or 30 days in jail. Notably, the FDA claims this ban isn’t truly a brand new ban.
JUUL, for example, makes use of a nicotine salt formulation—that’s, nicotine extracted from natural tobacco leaves. It packs almost the identical punch of nicotine as smoking, nevertheless it goes down so much smoother. That is, it doesn’t cause the identical throat or chest irritation that occurs with flamable cigarettes, allowing people to inhale extra deeply or more regularly, probably exposing them to much more nicotine. Not all vaping manufacturers report how much nicotine is in their products, but even once they do, analyses present what’s inside the vape juice doesn’t all the time match what is said on the packaging. One research, for example, detected measurable quantities of nicotine in some vaping products regardless of labels claiming the product to be nicotine-free. The tasty flavors often added to vaping products have been a giant part of their attraction, especially for younger people.
Kid-friendly flavors like cotton sweet or fruit punch have been notably well-liked among teenagers, who cited flavorings as the most typical ingredient in the vaping products they use. Diacetyl is a chemical sometimes added to vaping merchandise to create wealthy flavors like butterscotch or caramel. Food producers use this flavoring chemical in a wide range of capacities—maybe most famously in microwave popcorn; diacetyl smells and tastes like butter. While vaping has been touted by some to be a much less harmful various to smoking, the vapor created by digital cigarette gadgets is far from innocent. JUULpods and different e-cigarette merchandise comprise ingredients that end in an aerosol that can include potentially dangerous substances like nicotine, metals, and toxins. Many youth e-cigarette customers incorrectly believe they aren’t consuming nicotine after they vape. While much less poisonous than flamable cigarettes, e-cigarettes can make youth more probably to use cigarettes and nonetheless comprise toxins and the addictive chemical nicotine, which is dangerous to adolescent mind growth.
It doesn’t actually approve any tobacco product, vapes included, in acknowledgement that they’re all inherently dangerous. The dangerous substances present in some e-cigarette aerosols won’t just have an effect on those that vape. As of December 20, 2019, 21 years old is the brand new legal age minimal for buying cigarettes, cigars, e-cigarettes, or another tobacco merchandise in the United States.
Juul will proceed to promote the flavored pods on its own web site, although prospects shall be asked to confirm that they are over 21. Juul also stated it would bring these merchandise back to stores that spend money on age-verification technology. You may order Juul pods on-line and every pack will include four pods. Each pod will function .7 milliliters of e-juice, with 5 p.c nicotine by weight.

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On 18th June 2014, Leader in global payments - Visa Inc. - released the Visa Everywhere Travel Report for the 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil, which analyzes travel data and cross border spend on all Visa products, including credit, debit and prepaid payment cards.
During the four-day opening period of the tournament (June 12 - June 15, 2014), Visa found that international visitors spent more thanUS$27M on their Visa accounts. This represents a 73 percent increase over the same four-day period in 2013, and 47 percent more when compared to the opening four-day period of the Confederations Cup (June 15 –June, 18 2013), where travelers spent nearly US$18.5M.
Visitors from the United States, followed by the United Kingdom, France, and Mexico represented the largest overall tourist spend in Brazilduring the four-day period. On Saturday, June 14, 2014 alone international travelers to Brazil spent more than US$10.7M using Visa products. This was the highest tourist spend day in the country in 2014.
“These numbers reflect the significant impact that mega sporting events like the World Cup can have in boosting local commerce in host market economies,” said Ruben Osta, Visa Inc. country manager, Brazil. “This positive trend aligns with Brazil’s expectation that more than 600,000 international travelers may visit the country during this event -- ultimately boosting the country’s economy.”
Travelers from ten countries made up 65 percent of the total spend in Brazil, with four countries -- Australia (+675%), Colombia (+418%),Mexico (+204%) and United Kingdom (+101%) --showing triple-digit increases compared to spend during the same four-day period in 2013.
|Top 10 Country Contributors to Spend in Brazil on Visa Accounts: (June 12-June 15)|
|Ranking||Country/Territory||Total Spend (USD)||Year over Year Growth|
Visitors spent the most in categories such as lodging and accommodation, which accounted for US$5M, and in local restaurants atUS$2.5M.
“As a proud sponsor of FIFA and the 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil, Visa has partnered with clients, merchants and financial institutions in Brazilto provide a safe, convenient and reliable payment infrastructure for international visitors to enjoy their time in Brazil and cheer on their team and country,” said Osta. “As a partner for tourism and economic growth, Visa is making it easier for everyone, everywhere, to be a part of the FIFA World Cup - whether it’s at any of the 12 FIFA World Cup venues or by using one of the 1.4 million contactless payment terminals available throughout the country.”


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QuickTime is not advisable to use. According to the latest news, the Department of Homeland Security has released a statement regarding the Quicktime application for the PC owners. The US Government had advised PC owners to uninstall Apple’s QuickTime for windows.
The government has explained the reason behind such advice. It says that two vulnerabilities have been found in its code, as Apple is not updating the version of the software.
The DHS claims that the only way to mitigate it is to remove the software entirely, or users will have to bear the risk of “loss of confidentiality, integrity, or availability of data, as well as damage to system resources or business assets,” notes Engadget.
Security firm named Trend Micro also reiterates the government’s advice to remove the QuickTime application from your computers. To recollect, Trend Micro was the company which started the Zero Day initiative and it noted the two QuickTime for Windows vulnerabilities. However, now the company says that so far it is not aware of any successful attacks that have used the security holes. It also noted that Apple will not roll out any patches to close them so it will remain inviting to malicious attacks from here on out.
The US government has been regularly sending out security alerts about specific software through its Computer Emergency Readiness Team (CERT). However, the security alerts are often open-minded and advise people to use anti-virus software or keep updating regularly whenever it is rolled out.
Apple has terminated support for Windows a long time ago. The video player no longer supports either Windows 8 or Windows 10, even though some users hit upon a workaround.
Although DHS notes that Mac version of the software runs smoothly as it gets updates regularly. The company declined to comment to Reuters about the withdrawal of QuickTime support for windows.


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Driving into 2021 with a brand-new Car Insurance service
By Alastair DouglasFeb 2nd 2021
Last year was busy for TotallyMoney. While adapting to the new working-from-home way of life, we successfully launched Energy Assistant, our new energy-switching service, relaunched our car finance offering and created our exclusive app-first feature, Credit Assistant.
Despite the challenges of 2020, we’re continuing our mission to improve the UK’s credit score and help people move on up to a better financial future. With all our new features and products, it’s great to know that we’re making a difference to our three million plus customers, as well as being a brand they love too, as showcased from independent research last year.
We’ve kicked off 2021 with another new product; car insurance. There’s a multitude of reasons why it’s the next logical step for us. Just one is that 30% of people pay monthly* for car insurance, but many may not be aware that credit scores will be factored in when the offers are being priced.
Credit scores and car insurance: in the same lane
With our free credit report sitting at the heart of what we do, it makes sense that customers can get their car insurance through TotallyMoney. If they have a low credit score, it could affect their premium amount. Not only can we tell our customers this, but enable them to improve their score to get the best deal on their car insurance.
The product itself sits on the customer dashboard, and our brand-new instant quote feature allows customers to answer just six questions to get an estimated quote for their car insurance. They can then choose to answer the full 70-question form, or get a renewal reminder to make sure they never overpay again.
The FCA recently found that someone with the same car insurer for five years typically pays £370, compared with £285 for a new customer†. Arming our customers with the new service, we hope that they’ll continue to renew their insurance premium with TotallyMoney, to ensure that they are always on the cheapest possible deal.


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Kohl's will be open 24 hours a day until Christmas eve, starting today
Kohl's announcement to stay open for more than 100 hours straight until Christmas Eve is noteworthy and it may be a sign of a coming trend. We'll see if other major retailers follow in Kohl's footsteps in the coming weeks.
Procrastination has been a staple of the holiday shopping season since the day it began, but this year more than ever before, retailers are catering to the needs of last-minute shoppers. Stores across the country are extending their holiday shipping deadlines, and on the heels of these announcements, department store giant Kohl's has released its plans to stay open 24 hours between 6 a.m. on December 19 and 6 p.m. on Christmas Eve.
"Customers can rely on us around the clock for their last-minute gift giving solutions, and we are providing 24-hour access to Kohl’s stores right up to Christmas Eve," said Michelle Gass, Kohl’s chief customer officer, in a statement this morning. "Kohl’s offers a deep assortment of national and exclusive brands to make gift giving easy and exciting this holiday. Customers will be inspired to select the perfect gift for everyone on their list and shop whenever it is most convenient for them."
While Kohl's is claiming to be offering "incredible savings opportunities" during this last-minute shopping bonanza, the "opportunities" its touting aren't anything new. The press release announcing this information highlighted the Yes2You Rewards program (which awards customers 1 point for every dollar they spend, and gives $5 back for every 100 points) and the Kohl's Charge Card, neither of which are featuring any remarkable deals.
Still, the fact that Kohl's will be open for more than 100 hour straight is noteworthy--and it may be the sign of a coming trend. If other major retailers follow in Kohl's footsteps this year, these kinds of holiday store hours could become the norm in years to come.
What do you think of Kohl's plan to stay open 24 hours until Christmas Eve? Will you be doing some late night shopping? Let us know in the comments!


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Abstract : With an 18.3 percent year-on-year growth in the first quarter, the Chinese economy has posted a good start to the country's 14th Five-Year Plan period, empowering China to tackle the uncertainties and challenges ahead and providing the world with confidence in the recovery from the pandemic.
A worker checks the operation of a carbon fiber production line at the Lianyungang Economic and Technological Development Zone, east China’s Jiangsu province, April 16, 2021. (Photo by Geng Yuhe/Xinhua)
BEIJING, April 17 (Xinhua) — With an 18.3 percent year-on-year growth in the first quarter, the Chinese economy has posted a good start to the country’s 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-2025), empowering China to tackle the uncertainties and challenges ahead and providing the world with confidence in the recovery from the pandemic.
The double-digit year-on-year rebound puts average first-quarter growth from 2020 and 2021 at 5 percent compared to the 2019 level, indicating the country is on the path of high-quality growth stressed in its development blueprint.
It is also worth noting that positive economic indicators released this week come from both the production and consumption sides. In the first quarter, China’s value-added industrial output, retail sales and fixed-asset investment respectively increased 24.5 percent, 33.9 percent and 25.6 percent.
In particular, catering sales had almost returned to the level at the beginning of 2019, suggesting strong sentiment of the populace to go out, meet people and spend money.
The country’s recent performance in foreign trade, as well as its attraction to foreign direct investment, has shown that the Chinese economy’s integration into the world is unstoppable, and so is the globalization.
China has been one of the major driving forces of economic globalization and international cooperation, sharing the fruits of its development with the world and boosting common development with other countries. The Association of Southeast Asian Nations remained China’s largest trading partner in the first quarter, followed by the European Union and the United States.
China’s gains have not come easily. The country has initiated a top-level scheme to promote China’s socialist modernization and unveiled a five-year development plan. The roles of innovation, the real economy, a strong domestic market, rural vitalization and green development were underscored for China’s future growth.
It should be noted that the 18.3 percent growth was achieved from a low base in early 2020, when COVID-19 stalled the world’s second-largest economy.
Despite the economic rebound, China stays vigilant against challenges to its development. High uncertainties and instabilities persist as COVID-19 continues to spread globally and domestic economic recovery has yet to solidify. Long-standing structural problems remain prominent, with new situations and issues arising from development.
The Chinese economy has weathered the test of COVID-19. A good start to 2021 will inject further impetus into the country’s efforts to overcome difficulties ahead. Enditem
About Xinhua Silk Road
Xinhua Silk Road (en.imsilkroad.com) is the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) portal. China’s silk road economic belt and the 21st century maritime silk road website, include BRI Policy, BRI Trade, BRI Investment, Belt and Road weekly, Know Belt and Road, and the integrated information services for the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).
Source: Xinhua Commentary: Good start brings confidence to China’s new development stage


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Bahia, Brasil, 10 Oct – Chinese automotive company JAC has announced it plans to install its Brazilian factory in the Camaçari municipality of the state of Bahia and invest around 900 million reals.
The region already has car parts factories as because of a Ford factory in that Brazilian state.
JAC Motors expects to manufacture 100,000 cars per year as of 2014.
The new factory will create 3,500 direct jobs and 10,000 indirect jobs.
Brazil is currently the second biggest international market for JAC Motors.
Last week Chinese group Chery also confirmed it would build a car manufacturing plant in Jacareí, in the interior of Sao Paulo state, costing 1.2 billion reals. (macauhub)


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Articles Tagged Press Release
Articles tagged "Press Release"
CARSON CITY, NV – Governor Brian Sandoval and Elon Musk, Chairman and CEO of Tesla Motors, announced today that Nevada has been selected as the official site for the Tesla Gigafactory. “This is great news for Nevada. Tesla will build the world’s largest and most advanced battery factory in Nevada which means nearly one hundred billion dollars in economic impact to the Silver State over the next twenty years. I am grateful that Elon Musk and Tesla saw the promise in Nevada.
OSAKA, Japan / PALO ALTO, USA, July 31, 2014 – Panasonic Corporation and Tesla Motors, Inc. have signed an agreement that lays out their cooperation on the construction of a large-scale battery manufacturing plant in the United States, known as the Gigafactory.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk delivered five new cars to customers in London today at an event to mark the arrival of right hand drive (RHD) Model S in the UK. The occasion marks the beginning of a planned rapid expansion in the country in the coming two years.
Today, Tesla operates a store and a service centre in London. By the end of 2014, however, customers will be able to visit Tesla stores and service centres across the UK. Tesla will also continue to hold test-drive events around the country.
RHD MODEL S IN THE UK
PALO ALTO, Calif., January 29, 2014 – Tesla announced today that it will post its financial results for the fourth quarter and full year ended December 31, 2013, after market close on Wednesday, February 19, 2014. At that time, Tesla will issue a brief advisory release via Marketwire containing a link to the fourth quarter and full year 2013 Shareholder Letter, available on the company website. Tesla management will hold a live question & answer webcast at 2:30pm Pacific Standard Time (5:30pm Eastern Standard Time) to discuss the Company's financial and business results and outlook.
PALO ALTO, Calif. – Tesla sales in the fourth quarter of 2013 were the highest in company history by a significant margin. With almost 6,900 vehicles sold and delivered, Tesla exceeded prior guidance by approximately 20%. A higher than expected number of cars was manufactured as a result of an excellent effort by the Tesla production team and key suppliers, particularly Panasonic.
The two key drivers of demand were the superlative safety record of the Model S and great performance under extremely cold conditions.
PALO ALTO, Calif. – A variety of factors such as corrosion, physical damage to receptacles, or inappropriate wiring or installation of electrical outlets can cause higher than normal electrical resistance when using the Universal Mobile Connector (“UMC”) NEMA 14-50 adapters to charge Tesla Model S vehicles. When charging, higher than normal electrical resistance connections to external energy sources may cause excessive heating of the adapter.
La NHTSA a à nouveau accordé une évaluation de 5 étoiles à la Model S pour sa fiabilité en matière de sécurité dans toutes les catégories pour le modèle de 2014.
PALO ALTO, Calif. – The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has reaffirmed the 5-star safety rating of the Tesla Model S overall and in all subcategories for Model Year 2014, confirming the highest safety rating in America. While Tesla is awaiting feedback from NHTSA regarding their investigation of recent fire incidents, the German Federal Motor Transport Authority, Kraftfahrt-Bundesamt (KBA), recently concluded its review of the incidents, finding no manufacturer-related defects or need for further action.
German Federal Motor Transport Authority (Kraftfahrt-Bundesamt) Concludes Review of Model S Incidents
PALO ALTO, Calif. – Tesla received a recent inquiry from the German Federal Motor Transport Authority, Kraftfahrt-Bundesamt (KBA), regarding the Model S post-crash fire incidents in Seattle, Tennessee and Mexico. The KBA is the German authority in charge of motor vehicle regulation. They have the power to initiate and perform investigations, and compel recalls. In response, Tesla provided the KBA with data and additional information regarding each of these incidents.
PALO ALTO, Calif.-- Tesla Motors today announced the opening of the West Coast Supercharger Corridor, energizing a network of stations that enable Model S owners to travel for free between San Diego, California and Vancouver, British Columbia.
OSAKA, Japan / PALO ALTO, Calif. -- Panasonic Corporation and Tesla Motors today announced that the two companies have reached an agreement in which Panasonic will expand its supply of automotive-grade lithium-ion battery cells to Tesla. With this agreement, the two companies update and expand their 2011 arrangement to now supply nearly 2 billion cells over the course of four years.


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Steve Jobs had a vision in 2013 to build the best office in the world for #Apple & now this campus in near completion in Cupertino. Apple is expected to move in to their new headquarters in 2017.
Apple is planning to use 100 % renewable energy in this new building, & have designed it to utilize a combination of solar & fuel cell technology to meet its energy demands. Apple is planning to distribute the additional electricity generated to the national grid.
This building will be directly connected to underground express highways to enable efficient transport for Apple staff, we can bet that even aliens would be amazed to see this design if they confuse this as a spaceship.
Steve Jobs vision depicted in the video below:
Apple has made quite a lot of progress on its under construction “Campus 2” set to become the company’s new headquarters when complete around the end of the year. Since last checking in a month ago, a video update published today by Matthew Roberts for June shows continued progress on the roof of the main circular spaceship building, including a look at the heating and cooling systems installed throughout, and what looks to be some new outdoor areas surrounding the entrance of the underground theatre.
Well as always leaked images & rumours for iPhone 7 have started surfacing, this video rounds up all the expected features in the new iPhone 7. It is expected to launch in 2016, bringing in a new design and new features.
1. Thinner design but similar to iPhone 6s
The iPhone 7 is expected to be thinner than the iPhone 6s, with Apple using the elimination of the headphone jack, advances in chip packing technology, and a slimmer Lightning port to cut down on the thickness of the device. Rumors suggest the iPhone 7 will be between 6.0mm and 6.5mm. Apple’s current iPod touch, one of its thinnest devices, measures in at 6.1mm, compared to 7.1mm for the iPhone 6s and 7.3mm for the iPhone 6s Plus.
2. Better 12 mpx camera with sharper focus.
3. Dual-lens camera for iPhone 7 Plus:
Apple is rumoured to be working on at least one version of the iPhone 7 Plus that includes a a 12-megapixel dual-lens camera system that takes advantage of technology Apple acquired through the purchase of Israeli camera company LinX Imaging last year. Image quality in the iPhone 7 Plus could be greatly improved with the introduction of a dual-lens system, narrowing the gap between photos taken with the iPhone and those taken with a more robust DSLR cameras.
Dual Lens concept is also evident from the leaked iPhone 7 case
4. No headphone jack, high quality audio via lightning connector
Apple may be able to decrease the thickness of the iPhone 7 by eliminating the headphone jack and instead adopting an all-in-one Lightning port that will support both charging and music playback with Lightning-equipped headphones.
With the iPhone 7, headphones will need a Lightning connector or a 3.5mm jack-to-Lightning adapter to connect to the Lightning port on the bottom of the phone. The device will also support wireless Bluetooth headphones.
5. Wireless Charging
With the Lightning port being used for music playback, there will be no way to charge the iPhone 7 while headphones are plugged in, which has sparked some speculation about wireless charging. According to one rumor, Apple is exploring wireless charging technology that could potentially be included in the iPhone 7.
While Apple is said to be looking into wireless charging for the iPhone 7, there is no guarantee the feature will make it into the finished product. It is also not clear what method Apple would use to implement wireless charging.
6. Fast Charging
7. Faster A10 or Intel processor
8. AirPods: Bluetooth Headphones
According to another prediction from KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, the iPhone 7 and the iPhone 7 Plus may have differing amounts of RAM. The smaller 4.7-inch iPhone 7 may ship with 2GB of RAM, while the larger 5.5-inch iPhone 7 Plus may ship with 3GB RAM.
All the iPhone 5 or 5S owners finally have a good news!! They can still claim to have the latest iPhone SE in the market as it looks exactly the same.
Apple is targeting the low price markets with this phone and it was important to update the 3 year old iPhone to the latest market standards. 12 megapixel camera, Live Photos but still 16GB for 400$ that sounds like 3 years old too btw 😉
#FirstCrush Apple apparently wants to help you charge your iPhone no matter where you are in your home. A new report suggests that it’s building a new wireless charging technology that wouldn’t require direct contact with a power mat.
Bloomberg reports that Apple “is exploring cutting-edge technologies that would allow iPhones and iPads to be powered from further away than the charging mats used with current smartphones.”
The idea is not a new one. Earlier this month, Ossia showed off a system that allows an iPhone to be charged in mid-air. It works by using an antenna that can capture energy held in radio frequency waves floating through the air that are carefully directed from a central hub.
It’s not an easy challenge, for a number of reasons. The technology required to capture enough energy is, for Ossia at least, rather bulky. And as Bloomberg points out, “efficiency of power transfer decreases as the distance between transmitter and receiver grows.” If Apple is trying to build a sleek phone, those two issues create a compounded problem where it’s difficult to charge a battery quickly.
Indeed, Bloomberg claims that Apple “is looking to overcome technical barriers.” No kidding. In fact, it’s likely been working on wireless charging for years by this points. Whether we’ll see in the next iPhone, or the one after that? We’ll have to wait and see.
Apple plans to lose the beloved headphone jack for the new iPhone 7. The alleged move, all but confirmed by Cupertino itself, has become a hot topic and a contentious one as consumers now seek to understand whether their previous investments in quality headphones are now redundant.
As Gordon Kelly here on Forbes reports, “Of course in abandoning something so beloved as the 3.5mm headphone jack (part of a standard which has been around since 1878 – yes really, 1878!), Apple has to offer enough bait for the switch – especially given the iPhone is its most important product line.”
While it’s fair to assume that the new iPhone 7 will be bundled with standard EarPods with a Lightning connector, for the majority of users they will now be forced to either buy a different pair of higher end headphones or go with Bluetooth. It also ties in with the current push by Apple and associated OEMs like Beats, Philips and JBL going to market with Lightning enabled cans which will support higher resolution audio, something Apple is looking to implement with its Music streaming service.
But this is not just about music or consumer lock in. This is a revenue generator for Apple. Consider the worldwide sales figures for headphones in 2015 as an example.
The above statistics show the global unit sales of headphones/headsets from 2010 to 2015. In 2015, 290.9 million units of headphones & headsets were sold worldwide. Even a small percentage of those sales will equate to an OEM offering a pair of headphones with a Lightning connector, or an adaptor.
In Sept 2015, Apple announced that it had sold more than 13 million units of the iPhone 6S and iPhone 6S Plus in their first weekend on the market. If the iPhone 7 tracks to sell the same, you can assume that a large percentage of buyers will also look to purchase better headphones with a Lightning connector.


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Decarb Bros think it will all be fine.
They think that I.P.A.s are best paired with conversation about smart grid management and electric vehicle infrastructure. They trade memes on Twitter, and form messaging groups around their enthusiasm for technology.
The bros are a loose association of young climate technologists, researchers, policymakers, and those who follow along online. They believe in making light of themselves at least a bit. They call themselves 'Decarb Bros', regardless of their gender identity or ability to lift weights.
Billy Casagrande is a Climate Tech start-up employee at Scale Microgrids. He said, "We are against doomerism." He was referring a pessimistic belief that humanity is no longer able to combat climate change.
Decarb Bro, a 25-year-old self described decarb, continued, "The consensus among young people appears to be that we are screwed in relation to climate." Mr. Casagrande is one of the dozens who attend a monthly clean energy meet-up held in Brooklyn's Williamsburg district. He believes that there are other ways.
"The solutions are right here." The solutions are here.
Decarb bros have adopted the rallying cry "Deploy". They claim that by deploying climate technologies -- such as solar panels, heat pumps and electric cars -- they can decarbonize our economy, while also generating huge financial returns.
Kyri Bakker, assistant professor of engineering and self-described "decarb bro", said that the environmental movement is traditionally seen as altruistic. It was all about giving stuff away and making sacrifices.
The decarbbro flips these associations on their head, rejecting pure gloom and placing faith in government spending and business innovation to combat climate change.
According to Dr. Baker, the term bro has been historically associated with toxic masculinity. She believes that the term has shifted and is now inclusive of both genders. She said that a decarb bro was'someone working towards something we all care about,' without adopting a sacrificial attitude of traditional environmentalism.
Dr. Baker views the decarb bro-culture as an antidote for the self-seriousness and wonkiness of some parts of the environment movement. She cited in particular the Twitter account Bros for decarbonization which shares memes connecting bro-approved activities – namely drinking and lifting weights – with decarbonizing our economy.
As a competitive powerlifter Dr. Baker enjoyed the frequent gym references in this account. She said, 'It is a bro thing to store your weights. It is a bro thing to store your carbon emissions.'
James McGinniss felt the same way as Dr. Baker. He is the founder of David Energy a climate technology start-up that has received over $20 million dollars in funding.
For decades, saving our planet was seen to require sacrifice. Paul Sabin, Yale's environmental historian, said that environmentalists were concerned primarily with scarcity, consumption reduction and population growth.
Bill McKibben is an author and environmentalist. He said that green technology development was at a different phase. Solar panels weren't yet commercially viable, and electric vehicles were still decades from becoming mainstream.
McKibben stated that 'in the past, we thought of clean energy as alternative energy -- the Whole Foods for energy.' He continued that now that pointing a piece of glass towards the sun was the cheapest method to generate power on the planet, green-powered goods can be the "Safeway."
For many, the change in technology has changed what it means to be involved with climate. In the first decade of the 21st century, limiting emissions was usually done by a government agency or NGO. Working for a financial institution, a consultancy, or a new start-up can also be an option today.
Mr. Sabin stated that the business has caught up.
Sabin warned against an over-reliance on technology in the fight against climate change. He said that a strategy of abundance is based on the belief that technological innovation will allow us to achieve all our goals. But we haven’t produced this solution yet.
The decarbbro is unfazed.
According to Mr. Casagrande, the only way for us to reach net-zero emissions by 2050 will be through abundance – that is, creating products that are both emission-reducing and people want to purchase.
By using a business mindset to scale up decarbonized technologies, you can entice consumers with products not only because they have a lower carbon footprint but also because they are more appealing. The products must be either faster (think of high-torque, electric vehicles) cheaper (think solar panels that provide electricity for free or almost free), or cooler (that's subjective).
Washington has at least one supporter of the decarb bro philosophy - 'the carrot instead of a stick'. Jigar Shah, the Director of the Department of Energy’s Loan Programs Office which provides debt financing for energy projects, is a fan of the decarb bro philosophy. He is a frequent Twitter user of the Bros for Decarbonization account, responding to tweets, and highlighting its pro-tech, growth philosophy.
In an interview, Mr. Shah stated that the modern environmental movement aims to accelerate climate solutions by using technology. "Bros for Decarb" shows how persistence and a positive attitude are important in achieving this goal.
Dr. Baker stated that even talking about cars or other (guilt free) goods you can buy represents a significant change in the way environmentalism is perceived. In the past, practicing environmentalism meant buying less or downsizing one's car. This is no longer true.
She said, 'The Nissan Leaf is not cool.' "But if you go into a Tesla, that is something indescribable."
Decarb Bros may find that people are looking for work.
Climate Tech VC, a newsletter, reported that more than $64 billion was invested in firms investing in climate start ups last year. The excitement about climate technology has continued despite fears that a recession is coming.
McGinniss said that the anti-doom and gloom, techno-optimist ethos of decarb bro is present in the entire climate tech ecosystem. Climate tech, he said, embraces optimism. 'There are incredible solutions out there.
Naya Shim is an associate in a climate technology fellowship program. She says that the tech "is bright, shiny, new and screams opportunities." It's like a goldmine.
According to Ms. Shim there is a social urgency in highlighting the economic advantages of the climate change movement. She does not consider her self a decarbbro, but she has seen the impact the decarbbro philosophy and its message of opportunity for economic growth have on her peers.
Previously, people wanted to work in cryptography or at high-paying software companies that sold ads. Ms. Shim finds it encouraging to see that more of her friends, including her finance bros, are interested in working in climate change.
She said, 'The planet is the next big thing'. Without it, NFTs will not exist.
Sara Hastings Simon, a decarb-bro enthusiast, scientist and craft beer drinker, explained that the decarbbro aligns profit incentives with good deeds for the world. She said that the decarb bro was a 'bro for climate' who is "enlightened".
Isaias Hernandez is an environmental educator who founded the Instagram account queerbrownvegan. He's not so sure. He said: 'We cannot frame the ecological crises as a means to profit.' He fears that this incentive structure will lead to greenwashing, and even inequality.
He said that when you speak to climate-tech bros, they are very fixated on one solution.
Hernandez instead wants his audience think about tackling climate change by organizing at the grass-roots level. He said that when we rely on big technocratic solutions for saving our communities, these don't often involve the community.
Mr. Hernandez's critical examination of the role played by business in combating climate change is not unique. Degrowth, a subset of environmentalism, believes that economic growth no longer benefits humanity, and that combating climate change requires a shift away from the focus on Gross Domestic Product.
Money is still a powerful motivation for the decarb brother to solve the planet crisis. Casagrande stated that there are many economic opportunities. I don't believe people should feel bad about it.


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DawentsIT: All Things Technology news you need to know this Monday-
1.Tim Cook may have personally killed off an Apple TV+ drama. According to The New York Times, Apple TV+ was making a show about the collapse of media outlet Gawker, which outed Cook as gay, until the Apple CEO intervened.
2.Russian hackers may have compromised US agencies. A campaign successfully targeting the Treasury and Commerce departments has been going on for months, according to the Washington Post.
3.Huawei developed ethnicity-tracking tools. Huawei has worked with at least four partner companies to develop surveillance technologies that claim to monitor people by ethnicity, The Washington Post reported Saturday.
4.Twitter blocked retweets on Trump posts. Replies and likes were disabled on several of Trump’s tweets Saturday morning before Twitter reversed course hours later, telling Business Insider the change was made “inadvertently.”
5.SoftBank offloaded Boston Dynamics onto Hyundai. The South Korean automaker is buying an 80% stake in Boston Dynamics in a deal that values the robot maker at $1.1 billion.
6.Bill Gates says the transition is complicating the vaccine rollout. The tech billionaire told CNN’s Jake Tapper that the “transition is complicating, but the new administration is willing to rely on actual experts and not attack those experts.”
7.Facebook failed to ban an extremist group in India. Facebook determined that a religious extremist group in India likely should be banned from the platform for promoting violence, but it has yet to take action because of concerns over its staff’s safety and political repercussions that could hurt its business.
8.Exclusive: Jeff Bezos is running the day-to-day at Amazon. The plethora of disruptions caused by COVID-19, including supply chain lockdowns and shipment delays, pushed Bezos to become more involved in the here-and-now issues facing the company.
9.Exclusive: The UK government is monitoring anti-vaccine sentiment on social media. Internal emails seen by Business Insider show the government is aware of the small but significant minority of people expressing anti-vaccine views online as the jab rolls out.
10.Exclusive: Silicon Valley is headed to Europe. We spoke to Lightspeed Venture Partners about why it’s the latest Valley VC firm to go deal-hunting on the continent.


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Commentary: Printing money for Chinese New Year hongbao is just too costly
Let’s factor in sustainability when it comes to festive e-gifting. Tradition and technology can go hand in hand, say NUS Business School’s Lawrence Loh and Yvonne Yock.
SINGAPORE: With the Chinese New Year just around the corner, we recently overheard people engaged in a spirited discussion at a neighbourhood coffee shop about needing to make online reservations for new notes before queuing up to collect them at the bank.
They were agonising over the hassle just to dole out hongbao (red packets) over the festive season.
This ritual of packet gifting is not unique to the Chinese. During Hari Raya Puasa (Eid al-Fitr) observed by Muslims, green packets containing gifts of cash are handed out. Deepavali also sees purple packets exchanging Hindu hands.
One feature common to all is a distinctive cultural preference for crisp new notes, fresh from the bank, including the fragrance that comes with it.
It is captivating that this tradition of giving physical new notes has somehow withstood the test of time and modern technology.
Convincing the coffeeshop folks to reuse notes or even gift “e-hongbao” is probably an impossible task. What’s even more surprising that these were not older Singaporeans but young-looking people in their 30s who are probably tech-savvy. Why this hesitation?
WHY SO HARD TO CONVINCE PEOPLE TO GIVE E-HONGBAO?
E-payments have gained traction in Singapore with the proliferation of services such as PayNow, PayLah, and GrabPay.
The pandemic has only accelerated the growth of this trend as businesses and banks encouraged consumers to switch to e-payment for contactless transactions.
With smartphone use ubiquitous, most of us should be no stranger to e-payment services. Many of us in Singapore might even be avid everyday users of such services.
This might be the case in the years ahead, given plans to turbocharge e-payments, on the back of a national drive which saw more than half of hawkers offering e-payments last year.
A scheme providing S$130 million (US$96 million) in Community Development Council vouchers for use at participating heartland shops and hawker centres may also speed up consumer adoption.
With the coming Chinese New Year, the Monetary Authority of Singapore has encouraged the use of used notes or switching to e-hongbao for two reasons: First, to support sustainability and second, to understandably prevent overcrowding in banks during the pandemic.
But switching to e-hongbao in the name of sustainability may be hard for some, who might feel as if they’re jettisoning their cultural traditions for the sake of convenience and modernity.
Where did this tradition of giving out hongbao come from? Legend has it that there was a demon named Sui who went around terrorising children.
To ward off Sui, parents decided to tuck their children in bed with coins wrapped in an envelope. When Sui came for the children, the coins would fall out of the envelope, emanating a ray of light that scared Sui.
Since then, the practice of giving hongbao has evolved in form over various dynastic eras in China. However, coins were used, not the physical notes seen today, let alone brand-new notes.
It is probably only over the recent century that notes were used instead of coins because the newer coins did not have holes in the centre for the giver to string together. E-hongbao might be a natural next evolution of such traditions.
THE SUSTAINABILITY IMPERATIVE TO DITCH PHYSICAL HONGBAO
We should also not neglect the sustainability imperative. Most red packets likely end up in the incinerator. Many tend not be easily recyclable due to their designs and materials used.
It is not just the red packets. The new notes that we painstakingly queue for will only be used momentarily, and become used notes deposited back into bank accounts at the end of the festive season.
If the public continues to demand only new notes each festive season, the used notes have few opportunities to be recirculated.
In Singapore, as many as 100 million pieces of new notes are issued to meet this annual demand. S$2 notes, which form the bulk of new notes issued, that are deposited are reissued as good-as-new notes the following Chinese New Year.
This recycling of used notes has helped to meet about 20 per cent of annual festive demand, reduced wastage and supported the environment.
But the remaining used S$2 notes, which exceed circulation needs, are subsequently destroyed. The carbon footprint from producing and destroying just the excess S$2 notes is significant – equivalent to the annual emissions from powering 430 four-room public housing flats.
CNA's Heart of the Matter looks into what's behind people's resistance in giving out e-hongbao and what can change their minds:
COSTS OF PRINTING MONEY
Sustainability is not the only reason why we should be persuaded to give e-hongbao a chance. The practical cost of printing paper currency is a key consideration too.
The US Department of the Treasury’s Bureau of Engraving and Printing’s 2021 currency operating budget was US$1.1 billion. The cost of printing a US$1 note was 6.2 cents per note - just over 6 per cent of the note’s monetary value.
Traditions can move with the times, especially if we look at China where hongbao originated. In 2014, the Internet behemoth Tencent introduced the e-hongbao function in its ubiquitous WeChat platform.
Many other players have joined the fray, some adding innovative bells and whistles such as embedded videos and hongbao snatches. The rest is history – the vast majority of the people in the country are now gifting electronically.
Thankfully the use of e-hongbao is on the rise in Singapore. In 2021, DBS Bank reported more than 32,000 QR Gift transactions through the PayLah app totaling S$2 million (US$1.48 million) by the second day of the Chinese New Year, compared to 18,000 totaling S$660,000 (US$490,000) over the same period in 2020.
Other banks also saw an upward trend in the transaction. UOB saw three times an increase in e-hongbao transactions through the UOB app. Similarly, OCBC Bank observed a 140 per cent increase in e-hongbao transactions through the OCBC app compared to 2020.
Understandably, some might feel that e-hongbao will erode the essence of a festive occasion like the New Year.
However, as some pragmatic folks have put it, if we view the gifting of hongbao as a token of well wishes, it should not matter if it comes in the form of physical red packets or via electronic means.
Using e-hongbao is also convenient as one does not need to visit the bank to queue up for new notes, or to deposit the money received after the festive season. A few clicks are all that is needed to give and receive. One also does not need to worry about misplacing e-hongbao.
Let’s go beyond the reason of tradition to stick to physical hongbao. From a sustainability and practical viewpoint, the rationale for gifting e-hongbao is compelling. The historical switch from coins to physical notes did not result in a loss of tradition.
Even if we believe the original myth that the emitted light from the coins can ward off the evil spirit of Sui, we can argue that the e-hongbao, being electronic in nature and glimmering from our smartphones at night, will probably do a better job than the physical notes.
Lawrence Loh and Yvonne Yock are director and research associate respectively at the Centre for Governance and Sustainability, NUS Business School.


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The Vietnamese government deserves praise for taking decisive action to mitigate the negative impacts of the global economic cisis, but the success has been achieved at a price, a new European Union report says.
"Pursuing a pro-growth agenda into late 2010 despite signs of overheating has had a significant negative impact on inflation, forex reserves, the exchange rate, and above all, investor confidence," according to the Green Book 2011, a publication by the EU Commercial Counsellors and the EU Delegation to Vietnam.
The report said Vietnam's economic growth has arrived at a "critical stage" where the government should decide clearly to implement pro-business policies in order to boost investor confidence.
Vietnam's inflation is expected to rise 19.78 percent this month compared with May last year, the General Statistics Office said. The government launched a series of measures late February in an attempt to restore macroeconomic stability and control inflation, and economists say the policies have begun to show their effect.
The Green Book is an annual report on Vietnam's economic performance in general and EU-Vietnam trade relations in particular.
This year's report said Vietnam enjoyed a trade surplus of nearly 4.9 billion euros with the EU in 2010. Labor intensive products continued to dominate Vietnamese exports to the EU while the key commodities exported from the EU to Vietnam remained high-tech products.
The top export product from Vietnam to the EU last year was footwear, valued at 1.75 billion euros. It was followed by textiles and garments, coffee, seafood and furniture.


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Illinois Department of Commerce & Economic Opportunity
DCEO has compiled a list of resources for small businesses along with helpful links. Small Business Development Centers across the state are available to assist businesses with accessing resources. Please visit their website (LINK) for more information.
State of Illinois Updates
Keep up-to-date with Governor’s press announcements and the IL Department of Public Health on their website (LINK). On March 19 Governor Pritzker announced a series of new measures to relieve pressure on small businesses. Specific to restaurants, the Governor announced that any eating and drinking establishments that incurred less than $75,000 in sales tax liabilities last year will not be charged penalties or interest on payments due in March, April or May made late. Penalties and interest will be automatically waived; however, qualified taxpayers must still file their sales tax return even if they are unable to make a payment. Any taxpayers taking advantage of this relief will be required to pay their sales tax liabilities due in March, April and May in four installments starting on May 20 and extending through August 20. For more information, please visit their website (LINK).
Small Business Administration (SBA) Updates
Sign up for SBA email updates on their website (LINK).
COVID-10: Small Business Loan Information
The State of Illinois has received its statewide Economic Injury Declaration which means small businesses in Illinois may be eligible for low-interest, economic injury disaster loans up to $2M per business. Eligibility requirements are determined by SBA and can be found on their website (LINK). Businesses can access additional information (LINK) and apply for the loan online (LINK).
Unemployment benefits may be available to some individuals whose unemployment is attributable to COVID-19. IDES recently adopted emergency rules to try to make the unemployment insurance system as responsive to the current situation as possible. Please visit the Illinois Department of Employment Security’s website (LINK) to review the for the information to assist your employees
Below are links to several of the local area utilities regarding their response to COVID-19:
The La Grange Business Association (LINK) and the West Suburban Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LINK) offer pertinent COVID-19 information for businesses on their websites.
DoorDash is offering assistance to the restaurant industry through a package of commission relief for new and existing DoorDash partner restaurants. Please visit their website (LINK) for more information.
GrubHub is offering assistance to independent restaurants by deferring commission fees. Please visit their website (LINK) for more information.
UberEats is offering assistance to independent restaurants by waiving delivery fees and enabling same-day payouts for any UberEats restaurants who request it, to increase cash flow certainty. Please visit their website (LINK) for more information.


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Avoidance of Russian ports and mutual closing of air space leads to new inefficiency and less air cargo capacity
Overseas: Self-imposed restrictions by exporting European companies and the looming closure of ports for Russian vessels as well as re-routing to avoid affected areas are creating delays and uncertainty. Some of the world’s largest container carriers including MSC, Maersk, CMA CGM and Hapag Lloyd, controlling about 60% of global container shipping, have suspended bookings of nonessential cargo to and from Russia and partially also Ukraine due to safety reasons. Consequently, cargo for these destinations is piling up in ports. But even if cargo is still shipped to Russia – and payment can be accepted – it will still receive extra customs inspection due to the sanctions in place, delaying handling and shipments in European ports. Some 10% of the total annual container throughput at the port of Rotterdam, Europe’s largest port, is linked to Russia and 13% of its total volume, with large amounts of heavy crude oil, LNG and coal. Rotterdam also serves as a hub for several metals. About 5% of throughput is linked to Russia at the second and third largest European ports, Antwerp and Hamburg. But this is not limited to shipping and seaports, as air traffic is perhaps even more affected.
Overland and through the air: The blockage of the Ukraine rail route has already limited transport capacity and detours have to be made by air. Consequently, capacity is suffering from new reductions due to inefficiencies and loss of freight capacity. For example, Lufthansa anticipates a 10% capacity reduction on the Asia-Europe route due to the conflict between Russia and Ukraine. And one of the world’s largest cargo-only carriers, Airbridge cargo, is also based in Russia. On top of this, soaring fuel prices are significantly pushing up transport costs. Another large airfreight carrier, Cargolux, introduced a surcharge because of the implications of the war for capacity and routes.
Shortage of workers: 10.5% of all seafarers come from Russia and 4% from Ukraine, according to the International Chamber of Shipping. In the Black sea, many crewed vessels are stuck due to hostilities and port closures. The closure of airspace makes traveling and relocation for seafarers more difficult as well. The truck driver shortage in Europe could also intensify as an estimated 4,000 to 5,000 truck drivers are held up in Ukraine, according to IRU. Although this is only a fraction of the 3.8 million heavy truck and bus drivers employed in the EU, it intensifies the shortage of 400,000 truck drivers across the EU.


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Canada Post is warning Canadians to be aware of a recent scam in which some individuals are receiving a letter fraudulently using the Canada Post logo and identified as coming from Canada Post.
The letter asks the receiver to secretly pose as a customer sending funds via MoneyGram to help determine the performance level of MoneyGram International service at Canada Post or Shoppers Drug Mart outlets.
This letter is not from Canada Post and Canadians should not respond to this fraudulent solicitation.
Canada Post Security and Investigation Services are investigating this matter and have notified the proper law enforcement authorities.
For information about this and other fraud scams, visit http://www.canadapost.ca/postalsecurity.
To report deceptive telemarketing activity, visit www.phonebusters.com.
For information on the recent Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) warning regarding a CRA letter scam, visit: http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/nwsrm/lrts/2008/l080818-eng.html
All Canadians should be vigilant when reviewing unsolicited material by mail that asks them to divulge any of their personal information, or seeks their participation in any monetary transactions. Fraud schemes such as this are commonly characterized by the following:
- You are hired on the basis of an email or phone call, without any personal interview or background checks. That's not how legitimate companies operate.
- You are asked to help process payments by depositing checks or money orders intended for their company into your bank account. You send them the money and you keep the extra as your ‘pay.’ Real companies never operate in this manner.
- You are asked to be a "mystery shopper". You send funds from a check or money order to ‘test’ a money transfer service or buy several small items at a store and send the rest of the money back to them. Legitimate companies would never ask you to use a money transfer or delivery service to send cash to them or anywhere else, for any purpose.


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Fareway To Expand With Purchase Of Smaller Grocer
A local grocery store that was started by lottery winners will soon become part of a larger grocer here in Iowa.
Brisk Street Market & Café is a locally owned, full-service grocery store that opened in Bondurant Iowa in 2014. The store got its start when Mary Lohse won a winning Powerball Jackpot ticket worth $202 million in 2012. The Lohses used the winnings to give back to the community, opening up a grocery store was one way they did so.
It offers a wide range of services including; a Loyalty Card Member program, a table service restaurant and drive-thru, deli, coffee, ice cream, local wines, movie rental, catering, propane exchange, stamps, and lottery tickets, and more.
In a recent release, the small grocer announced its agreement with the Boone-based grocer Fareway. The purchase will be finalized in early 2023.
Fareway CEO Reynolds Cramer says the company is excited to expand to serve the Bondurant community and to continue the legacy that it comes with.
Eight years ago, Brian and Mary Lohse brought a local grocer to Bondurant, and we are grateful they believe in Fareway to carry on their efforts.
While the grocery store will be rebranded as a Fareway, there will still be some pieces of the past left behind. The grocer plans to honor the tradition of full service by continuing the café’s operation.
As of current plans, Brisk Street Market & Café will be closed in January to undergo the remodeling process. While the Fareway remodel is going on the Café will continue to operate.
Brisk Street Market & Café will join the 131 stores currently being run by Fareway Stores across seven states.


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The days of content creators being compensated with beauty products and swag may soon be over as the now-multibillion-dollar content creation industry transitions toward monetary compensation from platforms.
To illustrate various pay-to-create models, Planoly examined the business models and creator compensation programs for eight of the biggest online media platforms to see how they compare.
The digital creator economy—which includes millions of writers, streamers, beauty vloggers, and more—has exploded in recent years, leading many social media platforms to launch creator fund initiatives. In 2020, when TikTok launched its creator fund with a $200 million initial investment, the platform said it would accrue to $1 billion within the U.S. and globally in three years.
In the past, content creators had to go out on their own to forge partnerships with brands in order to make a living online. Now, platforms are paying influencers to create content and increase engagement with viewers—whether encouraging them to use the Reels feature on Instagram or live streams on YouTube.
Creator funds serve as a way of cutting content creators a slice of the monetary pie. Some sites have tipping or subscription options where creators can earn money, but these are not necessarily through the platform itself. Twitter is working on a plan to pay creators but doesn’t offer this yet. The ability of these fairly new funding initiatives to attract and keep quality talent remains to be seen, but it may be a start in developing a steady business model for creative partnerships.
Keep reading to learn more about how content creators are getting paid by major online platforms.


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Bastion EBA Wins Garnier as Experiential client for 2019 & 2020 Australian Open
Bastion Collective’s leading specialist sponsorship and experiential marketing agency, Bastion EBA, have won Garnier as a key experiential client for the 2019 and 2020 Australian Open in a competitive pitch process.
The win comes as Garnier announces the signing of a new two-year sponsorship deal with the Grand Slam of the Asia-Pacific, becoming the Official Skincare and Haircare Partner of the Australian Open.
Bastion EBA have proudly been a lead agency for key partners of the Australian Open consistently for the past four years now, working with the likes of Medibank and Blackmores to deliver powerful, out-of-the-box and results-driven experiential executions. Garnier becomes the latest brand to join their growing roster of experiential clients.
Garnier’s Marketing Manager, Tim Plant, expressed great excitement in working with Bastion EBA to bring to life the Garnier brand and launch its new brand identity ‘by Garnier, Naturally!’ to the Australian market.
Plant said, “We are thrilled to be working with Bastion EBA who are experts in creating end-to- end experiences whereby brands can connect with consumers on an emotional level at every touch point. The creative concept they presented, a nature inspired playground, was truly unique and will allow us to extend the engagement of the partnership beyond the immediate grounds of the AO with a strong focus on organic social sharing to drive greater consumer interactions with our brand.”
“The execution of this partnership is strategically important to ensure continued cut-through and relevancy of the Garnier masterbrand, whilst heroing Garnier’s ongoing commitment to natural ingredients and sustainable production processes. It also allows us to build on equity from previous years supporting the AO with a strong presence back in 2005 to 2009, however, this year we are bringing a completely different and fresh experience to the AO audience”.
Bastion EBA won the competitive pitch and were awarded the contract due to their bold and unique concept that will be something never seen before in the Grand Slam Oval activation zone. Visitors to the nature inspired Garnier experience will be treated to a sensory overload of colours, smells and textures in a haven for social media lovers to capture the perfect content, before leaving with a coveted Garnier goodie bag.
Bastion EBA CEO Simon Garlick said: “We are incredibly excited to be working with Garnier at one of the greatest events on Australia’s annual sporting calendar. Garnier is a trusted brand that will bring a fresh and modern approach to the AO.
“Our team at EBA have worked really hard over the years to create outstanding and effective experiential solutions for our clients and working with Garnier over the next two years will be no exception”.
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The U.S. government says Oracle routinely and systemically pays white men more than women and minorities and that it favours Asian candidates over others in product development and technical roles.
Stories by Martyn Williams
AT&T chief executive Randall Stephenson met with President-elect Donald Trump on Thursday to talk jobs and investment but the company's multi-billion takeover of Time Warner was not on the table.
Yahoo intends to change its name to Altaba once the sale of its internet portal to Verizon is completed. CEO Marissa Mayer and co-founder David Filo also will leave the company then, Yahoo said in a regulatory filing on Monday.
The billionaire head of China's biggest e-commerce retailer met with President-elect Donald Trump on Monday to promote his site by dangling the possibility of a million new U.S. jobs.
Honda has developed a self-balancing technology for motorbikes that keeps them upright. The system, which is still in the prototype stage, could reduce the number of motorcycle accidents in slow-moving traffic.
Panasonic has developed a flexible lithium ion battery for use in wearable devices that maintains its electrical characteristics even after repeated bending.
Nissan is working toward technology to put truly driverless cars on the streets of Tokyo by 2020.
Faraday Future's plans for its factory are as grand as the plans for its car. The 3 million square-foot factory will cost a billion dollars and is scheduled to be up and running in 2018, but a visit to the site of the factory today reveals little more than dirt.
The PlayStation VR is Sony's biggest and boldest push yet into virtual reality, but consumers can expect more from the company in the TV and music realms, its CEO said in Las Vegas on Wednesday.
Sony showed off on Wednesday an OLED television it plans to sell later this year that features a gorgeous image and eliminates traditional speakers by vibrating the display to produce sound.
It was only a couple of years ago that auto makers started appearing at CES touting self-driving car systems. Now those vehicles are taking to the roads in various trials around the world and on Wednesday in Las Vegas, I got a chance to ride in an autonomous version of Hyundai's Ioniq four-door sedan.
For a brand that's been written off by many, TCL Communication has big plans for BlackBerry.
Chrysler is betting millennials will want to be as connected in their cars as they are at home with a new concept car that mixes high-tech gadgetry with a head-turning design.
The U.S. government has sanctioned Russia's main two intelligence agencies, four military intelligence officers and is kicking out 35 Russian diplomats over what it says was aggressive harassment of U.S. officials and cyber operations around the 2016 presidential election.
A day after it was forced to halt self-driving car testing in California, Uber loaded its cars onto trucks on Thursday and shipped them to neighboring Arizona where it says testing will continue with the support of that state.


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Pinnacle Bank customers can now support the local high school teams while giving back to the schools in Weston County School District No. 1 with the Dogie Pride Visa debit card. The card is available for customer order starting this week and, for every card order, Pinnacle Bank will give $25 back to the schools.
“We wanted to give back to the schools but also give the customers a perk at the same time with the personalized Dogie debit card,” loan officer Amy Hoffman said, noting that the cards have been in the works for almost a year now.
She explained that customers who choose to get the Dogie Pride Visa debit card will have the option to choose where their $25 is donated.


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RHINO - latest MUV to hit market
Sonalika Group, which has fast become the third most successful company in AgroAutomotives, is ready with their latest offering.india Updated: Jan 12, 2006 12:46 IST
Sonalika Group, which has fast become the third most successful company in AgroAutomotives in a span of eight years, is ready with their latest offering to urban sector in the form of RHINO, a multi-utility vehicle. Premiered for the first time at Auto Expo for the car lovers, RHINO has been launched by International Cars and Motors Limited, a part of India's one of the fastest growing companies Sonalika Group. "It was logical for the company to heed the market research signals that Indian market is more than ready for MUVs beyond a niche. Hence we ventured into the urban auto industry and plan to cater to the neglected segment of ex-tended families," said Mr LD Mittal, Chairman, Sonalika Group,when asked what prompted them to diversify into urban auto segment.
While giving an overview of the strengths of ICML, Mr Deepak Mittal, Managing Director explained, "It has taken more than two years of re-search and on-board planning, with the conceptualisation and engineering in technical collaboration with MG Rover, UK, a name instrumental in designing SUVs and MUVs globally. We are already in a win-win situation as we have already got an advance order from Indonesia based on the quality consciousness of earlier products and our state-of-the-art plant."
When asked about the logic behind setting up the manufacturing unit, Mr LD Mittal informed that the strategic decision of setting up the world-class plant in Himachal Pradesh, which is tax-free zone for manufacturers as well as buyers, was meant to directly pass on the benefits to the consumers in the form of value added features in the vehicle.
"The completely air-pressurised, ISO: 9001 and ISO: 14000 certified manufacturing plant of International Cars & Motors Limited is considered to be at par with the international manufacturing units of other auto brands. More importantly, foreign delegation visiting the plant always nods with amazement at the stringent quality control measures taken by the company, "added Mr Mittal.
While talking about future prospects of RHINO, which is being positioned as Practical, Comfortable, Efficient and Affordable Vehicle for joint families by Sonalika Group, Mr Mittal, said, "We have taken strategic decision in keeping RHINO for 50% ex-ports and 50% for domestic markets so that we can very well match the international standards at domestic levels and optimise the automotive needs of common Indian."
First Published: Jan 12, 2006 12:46 IST


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putilov_denis - stock.adobe.com
As a young startup, SambaNova Systems is already making a mark in the fast-growing AI hardware industry.
The vendor, based in Palo Alto, Calif., started in 2017 with a mission of transforming how enterprises and research labs with high compute power needs deploy AI, and providing high-performance and high-accuracy hardware-software systems that are still easy to use, said Kunle Olukotun, co-founder and chief technologist.
Its technology is being noticed. SambaNova has attracted more than $1.1 billion in venture financing. With a valuation of $5.1 billion, it is one of the most well-funded AI startups and it is already competing with the likes of AI chip giant Nvidia.
What SambaNova offers
SambaNova's hallmark is its Dataflow architecture. Using the extensible machine learning services platform, enterprises can specify various configurations, whether grouping kernels together on a single chip, or on multiple chips, in a rack or on multiple racks in the SambaNova data center.
Essentially, the vendor leases to enterprise clients the processing power of its proprietary AI chips and creates machine learning models based on domain data supplied by the customer, or customers can buy SambaNova chips and run their own AI systems on them.
While other vendors have offered either just chips or just the software, SambaNova provides the entire rack, which will make AI more accessible to a wider range of organizations, said R "Ray" Wang, founder and principal analyst at Constellation Research.
"The irony of AI automation is that it's massively manual today," Wang said. "What [SambaNova is] trying to do is take away a lot of that manual process and a lot of the human error and make it a lot more accessible to get AI."
Wang added that SambaNova offers AI chips that are among the most powerful on the market.
While it's known in some ways as an AI hardware specialist, SambaNova prides itself in taking a "software-defined approach" to building its AI technology stack.
"We didn't build some hardware thinking: 'OK, now developers go out and figure it out,'" said Marshall Choy, vice president of product at SambaNova. Instead, he said the vendor focused on the problems of scale, performance, accuracy and ease of use for machine learning data flow computing. Then they built the infrastructure engine to support those needs.
R 'Ray' WangFounder and principal analyst, Constellation Research
Two different types of customers
SambaNova breaks up its customers into two groups: the Fortune 50 and the "Fortune everybody else." For the first group, SambaNova's data platform enables enterprise data teams to innovate and generate new models, Choy said.
The other group is made up of enterprises that lack the time, resources or desire to become experts in machine learning and AI. For these organizations, SambaNova offers Dataflow as a service.
SambaNova says this approach helps smaller enterprises by reducing the complexities of buying and maintaining hardware infrastructure and selecting, optimizing and maintaining machine learning models.
This creates a "greater AI equity and accessibility of technology than has previously been held in the hands of only the biggest, most wealthy tech companies," Choy said.
SambaNova has already attracted some big-name customers.
One is the U.S. Department of Energy's Argonne National Laboratory in Illinois.
Using SambaNova's DataScale system, Argonne trained a convolutional neural network (CNN) with images beyond 50k x 50k resolution. Previously, when Argonne tried to train the CNN on GPUs, they found that the images were too large and had to be resized to 50% resolution, according to SambaNova.
"We're seeing new ways of computing," Wang said. "This approach to getting to AI is going to be one of many. I think other people are going to try different approaches, but this one seems very promising."


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From the Wires Nov. 28, 2014 01:24 PM SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA -- (Marketwired) -- 11/28/14 -- Simavita Limited ("Simavita" or the "Company")... ...http://in.sys-con.com/node/3244446
Continues Bell's presence within GLENTEL's national retail distribution network GLENTEL plans to continue offering consumers choice in Canadian... ...http://in.advfn.com/p.php?pid=nmona&article=64599636
Aarkstore.com announces, The Latest market research report is available in its vast collection "Construction in Germany Key Trends and... ...http://pressreleaseping.com/aarkstore-construction-germany-key-trends-and-opportunities-2018
post the closing of of Qualifies Institutional Placement. According to the TV channel reports, Anant Goenka, MD, Ceat said that the company will... ...http://www.indiainfoline.com/article/news-sector-automobiles-ancillaries/ceat-stock-closed-flat-114112802553_1.html
MUMBAI: The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Thursday announced the final guidelines for setting up payment banks and small banks, to attract serious... ...http://www.ipanewspack.com/industry/corporate-houses-allowed-to-set-up-payment-banks/
Financial accounting processes help...
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The car giant said the move will create hundreds of new jobs at the plant at i54 in South Staffordshire
Birmingham-built luxury SUV drives over a bridge made entirely of paper.
Award winning cake creator Lara Mason creates lifelike cakes to celebrate marriage
Warwickshire tourist attraction is to close on November 30 as it undergoes transition - but what does it mean to visitors?
Indian PM condemns Paris terror attacks and says he stands with France
The Land Rover Discovery Sport has space and luxury in abundance.
Midland brand involved in more bumps than any other says moneysupermarket
Moving civil servants to Birmingham and the Black Country would help them learn about life outside London, says MP
City comes out well in the World’s Most Competitive Cities Report 2015 – which ranks urban areas across the world
Car left completely wrecked after skidding on leaves and ploughing off road
Forty old members of 19 (Fighter) Squadron re-live memories
Baker is famed for her wacky designs, including Harry Potter and Jack Sparrow
Model Danielle Lloyd and stars from Villa, The Apprentice, TOWIE, Ex on the Beach invited to celebrate opening of leisure destination and see Spectre
John Worrall lost eight stone in two years after his weight reached 24-and-a-half-stone
Big spending revealed as new F-Pace model is revealed
All new F-PACE variant does largest ever 360 degree run
Midland car giant unveils ultimate motor for security-conscious driver
The Jaguar F-Type has the perfect blend of stunning good looks, power and performance...if you can afford the price tag.
Jaguar Land Rover has launched an investigation into worker being crushed and rushed to hospital afer body shell fell in Castle Bromwich
JLR launch investigation after worker injured and taken to Heartlands Hospital after morning break at 9.40am (August 17)
The new Jaguar XE model offers a generous amount of interior space for five people
Land Rover Defender production is still set to end - but later than originally planned.
John Egan and his team won their battle to get Jaguar Cars, then part of British Leyland Cars, back on the road to success.
Muslim JLR workers say they have been forced to take fluids during religious fast because of strict policy
James MacMillan, 25, pleaded guilty to attack on Stechford dad as his trial was due to begin at Birmingham Crown Court.
The Range Rover Sport boasts plenty of poise to go with its power, proving surprisingly nimble and agile.
Lara Clarke creates edible 4x4 to mark production of two millionth model
New smartphone app lets driver control steering, brakes and acceleration from OUTSIDE the vehicle
Thor star helped by Nicholas Hoult in new 'Good to be Bad' launch for Solihull-made Jaguar XE
New jobs hope as car maker looks to move National Distribution Centre from Gaydon to Baddesley pit land


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Social media giant Facebook plans to rebrand itself with a new name next week. The Verge reported on Tuesday, citing a source with direct knowledge of the matter, stating that the name change is to reflect its focus on building the metaverse.
The Verge further reported that Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg plans to talk about the name change at the company’s annual Connect conference on October 28th, but could unveil sooner.
The Verge added that the name is meant to signal the tech giant’s ambition to be known for more than social media and all the ills that entail. The rebrand would likely position the blue Facebook app as one of many products under a parent company overseeing groups like Instagram, WhatsApp, Oculus, and more. A spokesperson for Facebook declined to comment for this story.
Suddenly and inexplicably, Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, Messenger and Oculus services were gone. And it was no local disturbance. In a blog post, Downdetector.com, a major monitoring service for online outages, called it the largest global outage it had ever recorded — with 10.6 million reports from around the world.
It took Facebook nearly six hours to get services back online, albeit slowly at first. Ironically, the outage was so pervasive Facebook had to resort to using Twitter, its rival platform, to get updates out into the world.
The internet and its outwardly visible face (the World Wide Web) is a remarkably fault-tolerant machine. It was designed to be resilient — and the web has never gone down completely. As such, global outages like this one are quite rare.


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Nintendo Zone 3DS hotspots have been given a boost across the UK in a new deal between the format holder and phone network O2, activating 7,000 new hotspots across the country.
Nintendo Life reports that some of the 7,000 hotspots are active now, and the rest will roll out over the next few weeks. The access points enable 3DS users to connect their console to Wi-Fi while on the move for free, and gain access to exclusive content.
In a press release issued today, Nintendo shared some insight into some of the exclusive content, “Upcoming content available to download from Nintendo Video includes free 3D trailers for blockbusters such as Iron Man 3, Monsters University and Epic as well as 3D animations featuring everybody’s favorite pink morphing-maestro Kirby and extreme sports action from Red Bull.”
In order to access the Nintendo Zone O2 points your 3DS must have the most recent system update.
Do you use Nintendo Hotspot? Is this a good move? Let us know below.


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The cold spell forecast should boost domestic consumption, there is continued uncertainty for the food service sector as covid case numbers continue to rise. Good harvesting progress has been made in Donegal over the past week, with some growers nearing completion. Again, variable yields are reported and quality appears to be very good.
In the U.K in terms of maincrop, there is more of a focus on best quality samples now and although demand has not been exceptionally strong, some growers have managed to force prices higher in the East. Quality M.Piper are in demand and it is reported that it is very difficult to find samples without bruising.In Europe, fresh markets are reported as “holding to firm” with promotions generating more demand. Exporters report general enquiries from Eastern Europe and good movement from Germany from where transport costs are lower.
|Rooster box (New Season)
|Rooster 10 kg (New Season)
|Queens 10 kg bag
|New Season Kerr Pinks


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Starting earlier today Time Warner Cable welcomed subscribers to access entertainment, news, and sports programming via Apple iOS mobile devices away from home. Subscribers will need a Wi-Fi connection to watch the content, which includes Live TV On The Go and over 1,100 titles from TWC’s On Demand library. The updated app (Version 3.2.0), is available to download from the iTunes Store and supports iPad, iPad Mini, iPhone and iPod iTouch devices.
Earlier this week AT&T announced a deal with Disney/ABC that gives U-verse subscribers access to Disney-branded channels via Apple iOS and Kindle Fire Android devices. The three Disney channels include WATCH Disney Channel, WATCH Disney XD, and WATCH Disney Junior — all of which are available through their corresponding websites or via free downloadable apps. WATCH Disney content includes live programming as well as on demand episodes from shows such as “Shake It Up,” “Good Luck Charlie,” and “Phineas and Ferb.” U-verse customers need to be subscribed to those Disney channels, and can authenticate their subscriptions online or via mobile app.
2.0.0 version of the app launches today to support Android devices.
Not at home but gotta watch the NCAA basketball tournament? The NCAA and Turner Sports have released the updated NCAA March Madness Live app that will get the …
CBS has launched a new streaming app for iPad and iPhone users to watch full episodes of daytime, late night and primetime programming. Daytime and late night programming is available one day after broadcast, but you’ll have to wait a full eight days to stream primetime shows. The new CBS App will also integrate features from the CBS Connect App by the start of the fall TV season, such as social feeds, live event access, and second-screen content.
Cablevision subscribers with the Optimum TV to Go service can now get the Disney channels Watch Disney Channel, Watch Disney XD and Watch Disney Junior streaming live or On Demand. The ‘to Go’ service lets subscribers watch content on Apple iOS devices such as the iPad and iPhone, on Cablevision’s TV to Go website, or through Disney online services. The iOS apps (available for free through the Apple store) also include a kid-friendly mode and parental controls. You can find the free apps by doing a search for “Optimum” or “Optimum for Ipad” in the Apple Store or iTunes.
Here’s more from CES 2013 in Las Vegas. Roku has announced the platform now offers over 700 channels of streaming content. And, this quarter the company plans to over a dozen new content partners that include Time Warner Cable, FOX NOW, PBS, PBS KIDS, Blockbuster On Demand, DailyMotion, Syfy, Big Fish Unlimited, and iHeartRadio among others. The addition of Time Warner Cable channels (numbering close to 300) will be the first time TWC offers it’s television programming through a third-party TV-connected device (although Android and iOS apps have been available). Time Warner Cable subscribers will be able to log-in through Roku devices and access the channels using their TWC username and password.
Here’s some good news if you’re an iPhone or iPod touch owner. Amazon has launched an app for the Prime Instant Video service that will work on the Apple iOS devices, giving Prime subscribers access to over 30,000 movie and TV titles to stream at any time. The app offers features such as “Your Watchlist” (which allows you to create personal movie lists) and “Your Video Library” (which stores your Amazon Instant Video rentals and purchases). The Amazon Instant Video app is downloadable for free from the Apple App Store.
Just minutes ago Apple officially announced the new iPhone 5 in San Francisco. So what are the highlights? iPhone 5 is constructed of aluminum and glass, with a sapphire lens cover. The display, as expected, is 4-inches tall (guess early Reuters sources were correct). Measurements include 7.6 Depth (mm), 112 Weight (g), and 3.31 Volume (in³). iOS 6 will be released Sept. 16 with maps that include turn-by-turn directions. What’s more, the upgrade to iOS 6 will run on iPhone 3GS. The Apple iPhone 5 will available in 3 configurations: 16GB for $199, 32GB for $299 and 64GB for $399. The iPhone 5 will ship starting Sept. 21 to US, Canada, UK, France, Germany, and Australia. What will happen to previous iPhone models? The iPhone 4S will reduce to $99, and the iPhone 4 will be free, with service plans. Pre-orders for iPhone 5 start Sept. 14.
If you can’t be in front of your TV this year for March Madness you might want to check out the new app for Apple devices. The app itself is free, but you can upgrade to watch all 67 games …
An update for Sony Internet TVs powered by Google TV and the Sony Internet TV Blu-ray Disc player is now available. The software update includes improved user interface, enhanced search, and access to hundreds of apps in the Android Market (rolling …


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Markets are closed in Canada today, so there’s very little on the economic calendar today, and hopefully your calendar is also heavy on the relaxation.
It’s also a relatively quiet day for economics in the rest of the world today. Tomorrow, Bank of Canada governor Stephen Poloz will be in Charlottetown for a speech, on Wednesday we’ll have wholesale trade numbers. On Friday we’ll wrap up the week with April inflation and retail sales numbers for Canada, and inflation will also be coming in from eurozone and the U.K. this week, alongside some real GDP numbers for the first quarter for Germany and Japan. In the U.S., watch for Friday, when Fed chair Janet Yellen will give a closely watched speech on the outlook for the American economy.
We’ll be starting the working week tomorrow with surprisingly good news about Canadian manufacturing, after manufacturing numbers in March were better than expected. After falling for the two previous months, manufacturing was up 2.9 per cent, pushed by auto parts and aerospace manufacturing, which was up by 42.3 per cent (though big swings in aerospace manufacturing are typical for the industry.)
House prices are on the rise. Even as the drop in oil prices has chipped back house prices in Calgary, the latest housing numbers suggest that rising prices aren’t only a feature of Toronto and Vancouver: last month, house prices were up 2.3 per cent (seasonally adjusted), with a 10 per cent rise year-over-year. According to BMO, 16 of Canada’s largest cities rose by more than 10 per cent in April, with seven of those cities rising by 20 per cent or more: including a 37 per cent bump year over year in Vancouver. House prices across the country evened out to $448,862 – but there are big gaps in what nearly half a million can buy you in cities across the country, as Jason Kirby points out in Maclean’s. In Vancouver’s case, this won’t even get you a house in Vancouver. (Check out the slideshow here of what that price will get you in each major city.)
Why is Kijiji so big in Canada? The New York Times has this story about why the online classified site Kijiji has done so well in Canada, but come up short in the U.S. Here, the site is dominant, with 42 per cent of Canadians using the website, three times more than its chief rival, Craigslist. The reason is largely because the site was a Canadian product – owned by Ebay, it began as an idea from a former executive, Janet Bannister, who saw a gap in online ads left after moving back to Canada from California. She noted Canadians’ dislike for auction pricing and hefty shipping costs, and saw a penny-pinching opportunity for trading cars, sub-lets and other services.
Greek slipped perilously close to the edge last week. It was down to the wire last week whether the country would be able to pay their 750 million euro debt to the IMF. In the end, they managed to pay the bill – but not because they had the money. Instead, they used a special line of credit to borrow from the IMF to pay the IMF, and only after Tsipras told the head of the Fund, Christine Lagarde, that the country wouldn’t be able to pay without emergency help from the European Central Bank. This is just the latest development in a long-running question: how much cash does Greece actually have (no one but the Greek government knows exactly), and with a series of payments to come in the next several months, how long can they keep scraping together last-minute funds?
The other Greek showdown. In the last few years, Greek yogurt has become the craze of all yogurt crazes, spawning endless varieties and power-house brands: including Chobani, the American yogurt company that caught the wave ahead of the yogurt giants, and stumbled in the process. The Wall Street Journal has this story about how the company, founded by a Turkish immigrant in New York, bought a big factory and eschewed a professional CEO or other big-growth trappings, even as their sales grew to $1 billion. Now, faced with falling profits and a slew of seasoned competitors, the company is turning pro – hiring a CEO and, perhaps reluctantly, taking up the mantle of a dairy giant.
Need to know:
TSX: 15,108.12 (+80), Friday
Loonie: 83.18 (+0.16), Friday
Oil (WTI): $60.11 (5:30 a.m.)


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Russian company unveils its first commercial Baikal-T1-soc
The Russian company Baikal Electronics has revealed its first commercial soc. It is a MIPS-soc for embedded systems. The development is stimulated by the Russian government and eventually have to run government systems on Baikal chips.
Baikal Electronics has manufactured the Baikal T1 on 28nm at TSMC, according to the announcement on LinkedIn. The chip has two 32bit mips-cores on the basis of the announced in 2013 P 5600-series. There is 1MB L2 cache and clock speed is 1.2 GHz. The SOC supports DDR3-1600 memory and includes integrated interfaces for 10Gbit / s and 1Gbit / s Ethernet, PCI-E 3.0 x4, 600 SATA and USB 2.0. The consumption will be less than 5W and industrial and embedded systems with the chips could then be cooled passively. In June Baikal brings the first samples of the T1 off.
According Hrenov Gregory, technical chief at Baikal, the arrival of the processor “without doubt a major milestone for the Russian electronics industry.” Russia’s trade ministry, the development of the chip actively supported. That incentive is part of the efforts of the Russian government to become less dependent on mainly American technology.
Last year it was announced that the Russian government from AMD and Intel systems will move away and will make use of Baikal chips. In addition, however, it was a poor chip. It is not known how it is with that development. Incidentally Baikal expects that outside Russia will be demand for its chips.Viewing:-195
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