A Penny for Your Thoughts... If You Can Find One.
Published on 09/15/2021Bankers thought the nationwide coin shortage was over, as the U.S. economy reopened and previously housebound consumers were able to unload more of their change. But a combination of factors - including government stimulus payments, accelerated consumer spending and the threat of the COVID-19 delta variant - has stymied progress and forced retailers to resort again to asking shoppers for exact change.
El Salvador: Trying Bitcoin, Kinda.
Published on 09/15/2021El Salvador became the first country to adopt Bitcoin as legal tender Tuesday, but the rollout stumbled in its first hours and President Nayib Bukele informed that the digital wallet used for transactions was not functioning.
She Who Smelt it, Dealt it
Published on 09/10/2021She who smelt it, dealt it - except in this case. Did you know that there is a known case of someone being able to smell and accurately identify a disease sometimes before it's even medically diagnosed? Yes, you read that correctly and in case you didn't know, a woman who can smell disease, specifically she is able to correctly identify patients who have Parkinson’s via smell.
Small Businesses and Ida
Published on 09/07/2021Small businesses hit by Hurricane Ida face a slow and daunting recovery as they grapple with storm damage, a lack of power, water, and internet service and limited ability to communicate with clients or customers.
And the Winner Is... Whoever.
Published on 09/05/2021Republican efforts questioning the outcome of the 2020 presidential race have led to voting system breaches that election security experts say pose a heightened risk to future elections. Copies of the Dominion Voting Systems software used to manage elections — from designing ballots to configuring voting machines and tallying results — were distributed at an event this month in South Dakota.
App Monopolies Banned in South Korea
Published on 08/31/2021South Korea’s National Assembly approved legislation that bans app store operators such as Google and Apple from forcing developers to use their in-app payment systems. South Korea is reportedly the first country in the world to pass such a bill, which becomes law when it is signed by the president, whose party has backed the legislation. The ban is aimed at promoting fairer competition.
Where's the Bacon?
Published on 08/22/2021It looks like California may never be ok, but this time they did it to themselves and it is not an act of nature like a flood or fires. At the beginning of 2022, California will begin enforcing an animal welfare proposition that requires more space for breeding pigs, egg-laying chickens, and veal calves. That does not sound like a big deal until you hear that roughly only 4% of hog operations now comply with the new rules.
Right to Drug!
Published on 08/18/2021Impatient with years of inaction in Washington on prescription drug costs, U.S. hospital groups, startups and nonprofits have started making their own medicines in a bid to combat stubbornly high prices and persistent shortages of drugs with little competition.
Rain, Rain, Don't Go Away
Published on 08/14/2021We have known for a long time that Dubai plays by its own rules, so this next bit of information should come as no surprise. Officials in Dubai are using drones to artificially increase rainfall as the city grapples with oppressive heat, and who could blame them with temperatures increasing to and past 120 degrees Fahrenheit.
Right To Repair Challenged
Published on 08/10/2021As software and other technologies get infused in more and more products, manufacturers are increasingly making those products difficult to repair, potentially costing business owners time and money.
Chicken: It's the Other Other White Meat
Published on 08/09/2021Sanderson Farms, the nation’s third largest poultry producer, is being acquired for $4.53 billion as the price of chicken soars.
Interactive Chatbot
Published on 08/09/2021Microsoft filed a patent this year that would allow the company to digitally revive deceased loved ones as chatbots, using their data. This won’t just be a basic chatbot like what you see on social media; in fact the AI-based chatbot that would be built upon the whole profile of a person, including their images, voice data, social media posts, electronic message style and habits, to name a few.