DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

☆ You can now place DoorDash and Uber Eats orders through a call with an AI voice bot
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-12 | by ( Grace Dean | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Some restaurants are connecting callers to an AI voice service to place DoorDash and Uber Eats orders. Many people now place delivery orders online, but Kea's founder says restaurants sometimes struggle to handle phone orders. AdvertisementA new voice AI service means diners can place delivery orders with services like DoorDash and Uber Eats via phone call. The AI guides them through the transactions, including suggesting add-ons and recommending items they got in previous orders, Ahmad said. The delivery platforms that Kea can refer orders to are DoorDash, Uber Eats, Postmates, Grubhub, and Favor, Ahmad said.

Persons: DoorDash, Uber, Kea, —, Adam Ahmad, Ahmad, Siri, –, who'll, Olo, They'd, We're, NDAs — Organizations: Voice, Service, California Fish Locations: Kea, California

☆ Three new moons discovered orbiting Uranus and Neptune
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-28 | by ( Ashley Strickland | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

CNN —Astronomers have discovered three previously unknown moons around Uranus and Neptune, the most distant planets in our solar system. In the future, the tiny satellite will be named after a Shakespearean character, in keeping with the tradition of Uranus’ moons bearing literary names. He worked with Marina Brozovic and Bob Jacobson of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, to determine the moon’s orbit. The outer moons orbiting all the giant planets across our solar system — Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune — share similar configurations. “Even Uranus, which is tipped on its side, has a similar moon population to the other giant planets orbiting our Sun,” Sheppard said.

Persons: ”, Scott S, Sheppard, Marina Brozovic, Bob Jacobson, Scott Sheppard, David Tholen, Chad Trujillo, Patryk Sofia Lykawka, ” Sheppard, Neptune Organizations: CNN —, Carnegie Institution for Science, Planet, NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Carnegie Science, Subaru, University of Hawaii, Northern Arizona University, Kindai University Locations: Chile, Pasadena , California, Kea, Japan, Neptune

☆ Cambodia 'Upcycler' Turns Tonnes of Plastic Bottles Into Brooms
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-15 | by ( Feb. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +1 min

By Chantha LachPHNOM PENH (Reuters) - In a small warehouse in Cambodia's capital, a group of workers sit and spin waste plastic bottles into strips, turning them into bristles for brooms, of which they churn out 500 each day. For the past 11 months they have transformed around 40 tonnes of discarded plastic bottles, about 5,000 bottles per day, by "upcycling" them into brooms they say are more robust than regular brushes. Cambodian entrepreneur Has Kea, 41, wants to reduce plastic pollution in his community, in a city that produces up to 38,000 tonnes of all types of waste each day, according to its environmental department. Kea buys empty plastic bottles from trash collectors and garbage depots. "This also help reduce pollution to the environment and encourages people to collect plastic bottles to sell to us at a higher price, which in turn, could earn them a better living," he said.

Persons: Chantha, riel, Suon Kosal, Juarawee Kittisilpa, Martin Petty, Alison Williams Organizations: Reuters, Kea Locations: Chantha Lach PHNOM PENH, Cambodian

☆ The coldest temperature recorded in every state
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-09 | by ( Melissa Wells | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

While some states' coldest temperatures were recorded recently, others were documented decades ago. Hawaii remains the only state in the US yet to report a temperature below zero degrees Fahrenheit. The coldest temperature ever recorded in the US was -80 degrees in Alaska in 1971. In Alaska, the coldest temperature ever recorded was -80 degrees Fahrenheit in Prospect Creek Camp in 1971. Per data compiled by NOAA's State Climate Extremes Committee, here are the coldest temperatures ever recorded in each state.

Persons: — Organizations: Service, Kea Observatory, NOAA's, Extremes Locations: Hawaii, Alaska, Prospect Creek, Kea

☆ Giant seamount discovered in Guatemala is nearly twice the height of the world’s tallest building
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-01 | by ( Taylor Nicioli | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

At 1,600 meters (5,249 feet) tall, it’s nearly twice the height of Dubai’s Burj Khalifa, the tallest building in the world, according to a news release from Schmidt Ocean Institute, a nonprofit organization that advances oceanographic research. The ship is designed to map the seafloor by using a multibeam echosounder, which sends out sound waves to the ocean floor in a fan-shaped pattern, then measures the time it takes for the sound to reach the ocean floor and return. Schmidt Ocean InstituteThe seamount was discovered 84 nautical miles outside the Guatemalan Exclusive Economic Zone. Watling was not involved with the discovery but was part of a Schmidt Ocean Institute exploration in 2019. The recently discovered seamount may be taller than the world’s tallest building, but some have been found to have a height of 4,000 meters (13,123 feet) or more, Watling said.

Persons: it’s, Tomer, Ketter, ”, Jyotika Virmani, Les Watling, Watling, ” Watling, —, Tony Koslow, Koslow, “, ” Koslow Organizations: CNN, NOAA, Exploration, National Oceanic, Atmospheric Administration, Schmidt Ocean Institute, Israeli National Institute for Oceanography, Ocean Institute, Schmidt Ocean, University of Hawaii, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California, Pew Locations: Guatemala, Burj, Guatemalan, Manoa, Mauna Kea, Hawaii, San Diego

☆ Pūteketeke: New Zealand crowns ‘bird of the century’ championed by John Oliver
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-15 | by ( Heather Chen | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —The votes are in for New Zealand’s Bird of the Century poll and the winner by a significant margin, getting more than 290,000 votes, is the Australasian crested grebe, better known as the pūteketeke or the ‘puking’ bird championed by comedian and talk show host John Oliver. This 2022 photo supplied by the Royal Forest and Bird Protection Society shows puteketeke at Lake Ellesmere, south of Christchurch in New Zealand. To help spread the message and raise awareness, Oliver bought up billboards in New Zealand, Japan and the state of Wisconsin. “No bird on earth is more deserving of Bird of the Century than this one,” Oliver said on his show. “They are weird puking birds with colourful mullets.

Persons: John Oliver, “, ”, “ We’re, “ Pūteketeke, Peter Foulds, Young pūteketeke, Oliver, ” Oliver, Jimmy Fallon, What’s Organizations: CNN, Zealand’s, HBO, Royal, Bird Protection Society, AP, Wings Locations: kea, Lake Ellesmere, Christchurch, New Zealand, Royal, United Kingdom, Australia, Japan, Wisconsin

☆ Opinion | The War Between Israel and Hamas Is Splintering the Democratic Coalition
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-08 | by ( Thomas B. Edsall | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +17 min

These young voters faulted Israel’s response to the attacks, 52-32 percent. This wartime shift represents a fundamental break within a liberal coalition that has long powered the Democratic Party. Clearly, the most left-leaning young adults have the lowest rating of Israel. The Arab American Institute commissioned John Zogby Strategies to conduct a survey of 500 Arab Americans between Oct. 23 and Oct. 27. In this poll, 32 percent of Arab Americans identified as Republican as opposed to just 23 percent who identified as Democrats.

Persons: Biden’s, Biden, Donald Trump, Gallup, Jennifer Medina, Lisa Lerer, Benjamin Netanyahu, Bruce Cain, nonwhite, Cain, Siena, Hillary, ”, Norman Ornstein, ” Ornstein, Ornstein, Liz Skalka, Daniel Marans, Akbar Shahid Ahmed, “, Robbie Gramer, ” Gramer, ’ Gramer, ” Amy Mackinnon, Gramer, Antony Blinken, ” Yossi Hasson, Maya Tamir, Kea, Brahms, J, Christopher Cohrs, Eran Halperin, Niloufar Zebarjadi, Eliyahu Adler, Annika Kluge, Mikko Sams, Jonathan Levy, Zebarjadi, Jeremy Konyndyk, Harris, ” Laura Royden, Eitan Hersh, ” “, Hersh, Israel favorability, Young, John Zogby, Zogby, Farah Pandith, Pandith, —, Trump, Julie Wronski, Wronski, Stephen Ansolabehere Organizations: Quinnipiac University Poll, Biden, Democratic, West Bank, Democratic Party, Stanford, American Enterprise Institute, Democratic National Committee, State Department, U.S, USAID, United States Agency for International Development, Foreign, Liberals, Aalto University, USAID’s, U.S . Foreign, Politico, U.S ., Harvard, “, Israel, Young American Left, Tufts, Republicans, U.S.A, ”, Arab American Institute, American, Council, Foreign Relations, University of Mississippi Locations: Israel, Gaza, Medina, United States, Washington, Palestinian, ”, Finland, Russia, Ukraine, U.S, Palestine, Michigan, America

☆ Fact Check-Green lights in Hawaii sky came from satellite, predate 2023 fires
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-24 | by ( Reuters Fact Check | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

A night-time video showing streaks of green light in the sky over Hawaii predates the August 2023 wildfires in the U.S. state by several months. The lights were filmed by Japan’s Subaru-Asahi Star Camera in January 2023 and emanate from a Chinese weather satellite launched in April 2022. The 2023 wildfires in Maui, killed over a 100, making it the deadliest wildfire in the U.S. in more than a century, Reuters reported (here). Green lights captured over the night sky in Hawaii in January 2023 predate the August 2023 wildfires. Read more about our work to fact-check social media posts (here).

Persons: Japan’s, DEWs, Read Organizations: Japan’s Subaru, Asahi, “, Office, Reuters, Subaru, of Japan, YouTube, Asahi Shimbun Locations: Hawaii, U.S, Maui, Kea, NAOJ, Dqui

Large wildfires burning across the islands of Maui and Hawaii, fueled by intense winds, turned scenic beach destinations into smoky, catastrophic scenes on Wednesday. The fires are most intense along the western coast of Maui, according to local news reports, with the historic town center of Lahaina severely damaged. Here’s what travelers need to know. According to the local news outlet Hawaii News Now, at least three wildfires are burning on Maui, including one in Lahaina, a major tourist destination on Maui, and the upcountry section of the island. There are at least three blazes on the Big Island, in North Kohala and South Kohala, which includes the Mauna Kea beach area, according to Big Island Now.

Locations: Maui, Hawaii, Lahaina, West Maui, North Kohala, South Kohala, Kea

☆ Scientists spot a planet that shouldn’t exist
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-28 | by ( Ashley Strickland | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —A Jupiter-like planet located 520 light-years from Earth may be an unlikely survivor after its host star had a temper tantrum. The gas planet is known as 8 UMi b and was named Halla after its initial discovery by Korean astronomers in 2015. The exoplanet orbits a giant star larger than our sun named Baekdu, located in the Ursa Minor, or “Little Bear,” constellation. Halla orbits Baekdu at a distance about half that between the Earth and the sun at 0.46 astronomical units, or 42,759,659 miles (68,815,020 kilometers). While our solar system only has one star, many stars across the universe exist in binary pairs.

Persons: Halla, “, ”, Dan Huber, Marc Hon, ” Huber, Tim Organizations: CNN, Ursa, Australian Research, University of Sydney, Institute for Astronomy, University of Hawaii, Keck Observatory, Halla, Star Wars Locations: South Korea, Manoa, Canada, France, Hawaii, Mauna Kea

☆ A new supernova has appeared in the night sky
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-09 | by ( Ashley Strickland | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —A sparkling new supernova has appeared in the night sky, and a telescope atop Mauna Kea in Hawaii was perfectly poised to capture the aftermath of the cosmic burst. The supernova was first spotted within the spiral arms of the Pinwheel Galaxy by Japanese astronomer Koichi Itagaki on May 19. The Pinwheel Galaxy is in the direction of the Ursa Major constellation, about 21 million light-years from Earth. The new supernova glimmers bright blue in one of the galaxy’s spiral arms in the bottom left of the image. It’s the second supernova observed in the Pinwheel Galaxy in 15 years.

Persons: Koichi Itagaki, Itagaki Organizations: CNN, Galaxy, Ursa, Pinwheel Galaxy, Gemini Locations: Kea, Hawaii, Yamagata, Japan

☆ Ghostly flying 'whirlpool' that appeared above Hawaii could be leftover SpaceX rocket fuel
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-31 | by ( Chris Panella | Morgan Mcfall-Johnsen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

A Japanese telescope captured footage of the anomaly after a SpaceX navigation satellite launch. "The Subaru-Asahi Star Camera captured a mysterious flying spiral over Maunakea, Hawai`i," the Subaru Telescope said on Twitter on January 19. SpaceX launches a Falcon 9 rocket carrying a pair of television broadcasting satellites at Cape Canaveral, Florida. Michael Weekes Jr./ReutersThis isn't the first time a spiral has been spotted in the sky after a SpaceX launch. The SpaceX rocket is also known for the "space jellyfish" it often paints across the sky as it climbs through the atmosphere.

☆ The political and spiritual symbolism of Mauna Loa’s historic eruption
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-01 | by ( Kimmy Yam | Kimmy Yam Is A Reporter For Nbc Asian America. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +6 min

For many in the Native Hawaiian community, it carried a larger cultural and political symbolism and a message to respect Indigenous communities and land. Many Native Hawaiians are drawing from their mythology around Pele, the Hawaiian goddess of fire and creator of the islands, to help assign meaning to the historic eruption. “You don’t have authority to shape our sacred lands.”The eruption, Ing said, “is Pelehonuamea saying, ‘They’re right. And Pele’s lava flow, ho’omanawanui said, is associated with a cleansing that the Native Hawaiian community receives with gratitude rather than fear. So now Pele is coming in.”The symbolism around the eruption can also be applied to another lasting colonial force on the island: the tourism industry, Ing said.

☆ Luxury hotel booking programs from Amex, Capital One, Visa, and more can get you free elite benefits like room upgrades and on-property credits — here's how
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-25 | by ( Eric Rosen | Tessa Campbell | Read More | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +39 min

David Slotnick/Business InsiderMany travel rewards cards offer elite-like hotel benefits when you book with their online portals. The prices through credit card travel portals are often on par with booking directly through hotels. However, it's only available to Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card and Capital One Spark Travel Elite cardholders. Bottom lineYou might not have a premium hotel credit card or elite status with one of the major loyalty programs. However, that doesn't mean you can't take advantage of credit card booking portals to enjoy perks like room upgrades, free breakfast, and on-property credits.

☆ These 15 people are shaping the office of the future, designing meeting pods, hologram calls, and buildings that actually make workers healthier
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-24 | by ( Robert Davis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +27 min

These 15 power players are just a handful of the people designing workplaces to balance productivity, interaction, and employee well-being through indoor-air-quality monitoring systems, building amenities, holographic meeting spaces, and more. AftershipCities like Austin, Texas; Nashville, Tennessee; and Raleigh, North Carolina, began offering business-relocation incentives during the pandemic to boost their workforces and help increase occupancy in office buildings. Room's office suite includes a phone booth, a meeting room, an open meeting room, and a focus room. Room also makes a soundproof meeting room that fits two people, a more open meeting booth, and a focus room designed for quiet concentration. "The future of office work needs to be guided by a new, genuine form of flexibility in which the work, not the workers themselves, become even more malleable," Petersen writes.

☆ I left investment banking for a $185,000-a-year job in private equity. The hours are slightly better, but it's still a finance job — no one cares about mental health.
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-22 | by ( Ellen Nguyen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

So I looked at my exit options and found that going into private equity is a common progression for junior investment bankers. I was making slightly more in investment banking, but now I make £160,000 a year, or around $185,000, from my salary and bonus. There are a lot of investment-banking analysts in every cohort, but the openings in private equity are limited. In my private equity job, I generally start at 9:30 a.m., but I'm able to head home around 10 p.m., which is a big improvement. Do you work in investment banking or private equity and want to share your story?

The prices through credit card travel portals are often on par with booking directly through hotels. Depending on the issuer and type of credit card you carry, you might have access to special online booking portals where reservations include these sorts of freebies, too. Although you won't earn hotel points or credit toward elite status by booking through this portal, the $100 credit will likely make up for it. More Information Earn 60,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $4,000 on eligible purchases with your new Card within the first 6 months of Card Membership. Note that credit card lenders may use many different variations of credit score models when considering your application.

Search resuls for: "Kea"

17 mentions found