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☆ Hey, Bing, Help Me Overcome My Fear of College Basketball
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-15 | by ( ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +15 min

I’m still learning so I appreciate your understanding and patience.🙏Do you know a lot about college basketball, and do you enjoy talking about it? Why are people so obsessed about the college basketball brackets? I've never filled out a college basketball March Madness bracket, and I heard that it's virtually impossible to do completely accurately, even if you predict the winner. When filling out my college basketball bracket, should I just guess according to what team names I like the best? :)I’m afraid I can’t fill out a March Madness bracket, as I’m just a chat mode of Microsoft Bing search.

☆ Homebuilders say demand is rising, but they're concerned about a banking fallout
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-15 | by ( Diana Olick | In Dianaolick | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

The National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index rose two points to 44. "But given recent instability concerns in the banking system and volatility in interest rates, builders are highly uncertain about the near- and medium-term outlook." Of the index's three components, current sales conditions rose two points to 49, and buyer traffic rose three points to 31. Accordingly, the housing market continues shifting as growing household and family formation continued to drive demand against a chronic supply shortage." In the South it rose five points to 45, and in the West it moved four points higher to 34.

☆ Schumer pushes National Transportation Safety Board to expand rail safety probe beyond Norfolk Southern
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-15 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., on Wednesday urged the National Transportation Safety Board to broaden its rail safety investigation beyond Norfolk Southern to other large rail companies after last month's derailment in East Palestine, Ohio. Hours before Norfolk Southern CEO Alan Shaw appeared at a congressional hearing last week about the Ohio derailment, another of the company's trains derailed in Calhoun County, Alabama. It was the third derailment involving Norfolk Southern since last month. They can tell us how many fatalities there were — 2,768 — but not why or if company policies could have prevented them." The Ohio Attorney General's office on Tuesday sued Norfolk Southern in federal court, alleging it was negligent for causing the derailment.

☆ Oscars 2023: 'Everything Everywhere All at Once' co-director accepted his Academy Award in a thrifted tuxedo
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-13 | by ( Nicolas Vega | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

The Oscar red carpet is traditionally a place for Hollywood's top talent to dress up in brands like Prada and Versace. According to Scheinert's mother, who accompanied him to the Academy Awards as his date, his tuxedo was purchased from a second-hand store in Scottsboro, Alabama. Scheinert's mom told AL.com that they bought the tuxedo a few years back when he began to receive recognition for his filmmaking. "Everything Everywhere All at Once" took home seven Oscars on Sunday night, including Best Picture, Best Director and Best Original Screenplay. 1 best piece of advice for regular investors, do's and don'ts, and three key investing principles into a clear and simple guidebook.

☆ A worker died in a ship's cargo hold in Florida after 2 tons of paper crushed him against a wall, Department of Labor says
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-13 | by ( Grace Dean | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

A worker was crushed to death by two tons of paper being hoisted onto a ship, OSHA said. OSHA said the crane operator hadn't been able to see the signalman guiding the load movement. The crane operator didn't have a clear view of employees in the hold below, OSHA said. When the ship pitched with a wave, one of the loads crushed a worker against the vessel's wall, OSHA said. Premier Bulk Stevedoring was cited for one repeat and two serious violations and OSHA has proposed $43,750 in penalties.

☆ Biden speaks with California governor about Silicon Valley Bank: White House
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-12 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

U.S. President Joe Biden gestures as he boards Air Force One to depart for Washington from Maxwell Air Force Base in Montgomery, Alabama, U.S. March 5, 2023. U.S. President Joe Biden spoke with California Governor Gavin Newsom on Saturday about the Silicon Valley Bank failure and efforts to address the situation, the White House said after the bank's collapse. A White House statement said Biden discussed with Newsom an emergency declaration he issued on Friday to ensure California has the full support of the federal government as it responds to the impacts of severe winter weather, including flooding, landslides and mudslides. "The President and the Governor also spoke about Silicon Valley Bank and efforts to address the situation," the statement said without elaborating.

☆ The top 3 U.S. cities where new rental apartments have gotten smaller—and NYC isn't one of them
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-11 | by ( Kamaron Mcnair | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

The share of one-bedroom and studio apartments grew to 57% of new apartments in 2022, up from exactly half of new builds 10 years ago. That's part of why the average size of all apartments has shrunk. Cities where new apartments have gotten smallerNew Yorkers may be the first to tell you how small their living spaces are. Tucson, Arizona, leads, the pack, and its new apartments beats the next city's — Tallahassee, Florida's — growth by over 100 square feet. The average new apartment size grew the most in these 15 cities:How to get the most out of your space

☆ North Carolina lawmakers intervene to defend abortion pill restrictions in case testing FDA power
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-10 | by ( Spencer Kimball | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

North Carolina has divided government. Stein told North Carolina lawmakers the FDA determined that restrictions like those in North Carolina unduly burden patients' access to a safe and effective drug. A federal judge on Friday allowed North Carolina lawmakers to defend restrictions on the abortion pill mifepristone, after the state attorney general declined to do so. The abortion pill has become the central flashpoint in the battle over abortion access since the Supreme Court overturned Roe. Democratic attorneys general have asked a federal judge in Washington state to declare the remaining FDA restrictions on mifepristone unconstitutional.

☆ States are banning an energy pill dubbed 'gas station heroin' after people suffer opioid-like withdrawals, paranoia, and hallucinations
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-08 | by ( Alex Bitter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Known as "gas station heroin," tianeptine is sold under names like Za Za Red and Tianna. Users often buy tianeptine, sold under brand names including Za Za Red, Tianna, and TD Red, hoping for a boost of energy and better focus. Tianeptine's withdrawal symptoms mirror those of opioidsQuitting the drug requires an approach similar to quitting opioids, according to the FDA. In Wetumpka, Alabama, the local hospital's detox unit has attracted attention for helping people get off the drug, local television station WSFA reported in February. "People with a history of opioid use disorder or dependence may be at particular risk of abusing tianeptine," according to the FDA's guidance.

☆ Republican states say the FDA doesn't have the authority to override state abortion pill bans
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-07 | by ( Spencer Kimball | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Boxes of the medication Mifepristone used to induce a medical abortion are prepared for patients at Planned Parenthood health center in Birmingham, Alabama, March 14, 2022. The Food and Drug Administration's power to approve drugs does not override state bans on the abortion pill, a coalition of Republican attorneys general told a federal judge this week. The company has asked the court to overturn West Virginia's abortion ban, arguing that it conflicts with how the FDA regulates mifepristone under federal law. The GOP attorneys general said West Virginia's law does not completely ban the abortion pill. "A State's police power does not extend to functionally banning an article of interstate commerce — the Constitution leaves that to Congress," the company's lawyers wrote.

☆ In Selma, Biden presses for voting rights on 'Bloody Sunday' anniversary
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-06 | by ( Jeff Mason | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

SELMA, Alabama, March 5 (Reuters) - President Joe Biden pressed for the passage of measures to strengthen U.S. voting rights during a visit to Selma, Alabama, on Sunday to commemorate the 58th anniversary of "Bloody Sunday," when state troopers beat peaceful protesters marching against discrimination. It also came as his efforts to pass voting rights legislation have stalled in Congress. Coverage of the brutality of that day against the marchers, including John Lewis, a Black civil rights activist who went on to become a U.S. congressman, shocked the nation and helped spark the 1965 Voting Rights Act. DeSantis recently rejected an Advanced Placement high school course in African American studies claiming that it contained a political agenda, drawing criticism from civil rights leaders and educators. In January, Biden spoke at the Atlanta church of slain civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr.Biden's visit to Selma follows Vice President Kamala Harris's trip there last year for the anniversary of the march.

☆ Biden's clean energy factory jobs may elude U.S. union workers
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-06 | by ( Nichola Groom | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +9 min

Right to work laws allow employees to work in union-represented workplaces and be covered by collective bargaining agreements without joining a union or paying dues. American products, he vowed, would be made with union labor. Union labor. Many of the jobs created will be union jobs, the official added. "It's not a favorable environment, but we can still organize," Samantha Smith, senior adviser for clean energy jobs at the AFL-CIO, said in an interview.

☆ Your Airbnb is watching you
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-04 | by ( Dan Latu | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Airbnb hosts are hotly debating the appropriateness of security cameras. Some guests and hosts say it's an invasion of privacy for vacationers. Arizona host Zach Narus says cameras provide a "peace of mind" to his guests, just as much as they do for him. Once a guest messaged Narus that there was a loud banging outside the property and asked him to use the security cameras to check for an intruder or wildlife. Disclosing the use of cameras, Narus says, discourages bookings that are looking to throw a party.

☆ Factbox: TikTok's Chinese ownership, security concerns spark bans across nations
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/IllustrationFeb 28 (Reuters) - The White House has set a 30-day deadline for U.S. government agencies to remove Chinese-owned social media app TikTok from all federal devices and systems. AfghanistanIs in talks to ban TikTok and video game PUBG, with the Taliban claiming those were leading Afghan youths "astray." U.S. Congress passed a bill in December 2022 to ban TikTok on federal devices. U.S. Educational InstitutionsBoise State University, University of Oklahoma, University of Texas-Austin, and West Texas A&M University are some of the schools to ban TikTok on university devices and Wi-Fi networks. European CommissionThe European Union's executive arm, the European Commission, has issued an order to ban the use of popular Chinese app TikTok on its staff's phones due to cybersecurity concerns.

Feb 27 (Reuters) - The U.S. Energy Department on Monday said it will lend Li-Cycle Holdings Corp (LICY.N) $375 million as it builds a battery recycling facility in New York set to become one of the country's largest sources of lithium by next year. Senator Chuck Schumer, a New York Democrat who serves as Senate majority leader, had long advocated for Li-Cycle to receive the funding. Li-Cycle's Rochester, New York, processing facility is slated to open later this year at a cost of roughly $485 million. The Rochester facility will break down that black mass into lithium and other metals. The Energy Department in the past month has agreed to lend $2 billion to Li-Cycle peer Redwood Materials and $700 million to ioneer Ltd's (INR.AX) Rhyolite Ridge lithium mining project.

One of the plants where children worked, SMART Alabama LLC in rural Luverne, Alabama, is a direct Hyundai subsidiary. STATE AND FEDERAL INVESTIGATIONSFollowing Reuters' first story on child labor at SMART last July, as many as 10 Hyundai suppliers in Alabama have been under investigation by state or federal authorities for child labor violations, Reuters reported in December. In the shareholder letter, Chang reiterated that Hyundai was "discouraging" suppliers from relying on such staffing agencies in the future. He wrote that staffing firms who hired children to work at Hyundai supplier plants had provided false employee documentation. Earlier this month, thirty-three members of Congress urged DOL to seek strong and swift penalties against those responsible for child labor in the Hyundai supply chain.

☆ Factbox: TikTok suffers another blow with European Commission's ban
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] A 3-D printed figures are seen in front of displayed Tik Tok logo in this picture illustration taken November 7, 2019. Picture taken November 7, 2019. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/IllustrationFeb 24 (Reuters) - European Union's executive arm, the European Commission, has issued an order to ban the use of popular Chinese app TikTok on its staff's phones due to cybersecurity concerns. AfghanistanIs in talks to ban TikTok and video game PUBG, with the Taliban claiming those were leading Afghan youths "astray." loadingPakistanBanned TikTok at least four times, with the latest ban running for four months till November 2022, over what the government said was immoral and indecent content on the app.

☆ Here are the US cities where home prices are actually falling
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-19 | by ( Anna Bahney | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

San Jose, California, was the most expensive place to purchase a home in the United States in the fourth quarter. Prices for San Francisco homes are already down 21% in the fourth quarter from the peak median price of $1,550,000 in the second quarter. Among the most expensive cities that saw prices falling are Anaheim, California, with the median price of $1,132,000, down 1.6% from a year ago; Los Angeles, with the median price of $829,100, down 1.3%; and Boulder, Colorado, with the median price of $759,500, down 2.0%. Other places with falling prices saw the big price increases during the frenzied home buying market of the past few years. Instead, prices for single-family homes climbed in nearly 90% of metro areas tracked by NAR in the fourth quarter: 166 markets out of 186 saw prices still going up.

☆ Homebuilder sentiment in February improved by the biggest amount in a decade
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-15 | by ( Diana Olick | In Dianaolick | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

America's homebuilders are growing more bullish as buyer demand picks up, driven in part by slightly lower mortgage rates. Homebuilder confidence in the market for newly built single-family homes in February rose seven points to 42, according to the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index. This is the highest reading since September and the largest monthly gain since June 2013. The index stood at 81 in February of last year, before mortgage rates began to rise. Builders say affordability is improving, as mortgage rates fall back from their highs of last fall and start to settle in a narrow range.

☆ The 11 U.S. cities where rent prices fell the most in January
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-15 | by ( Mike Winters | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

U.S. renters are finally getting a break on their rent, with prices dropping in 11 major markets in January, according to new data by online realtor Redfin. Median asking rent dropped to $1,942 last month, down from a 2022 peak of $2,053. Only four cities posted double-digit rent growth in January 2022, compared with 38 in January 2021. The number of cities with price drops also continues to climb, from just two a year ago to 11 in January. January rent prices for this study are based on 20,000 apartment listings from Rent.com for the 50 largest metro areas in the country.

☆ U.S. home builder confidence extends rebound in February, NAHB says
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-15 | by ( Dan Burns | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Feb 15 (Reuters) - Confidence among U.S. single-family homebuilders improved for a second straight month in February - and by much more than economists had anticipated - in a fresh signal the housing market was turning a corner after last year's huge slump. The reading - the highest since September - was also higher than all 33 projections in a Reuters survey of economists, which had a median estimate of 37. A reading below 50 indicates that more builders view conditions as poor rather than good. Moreover, it appears that the peak in mortgage rates has passed, said NAHB Chief Economist Robert Dietz. NAHB said all four regions saw improved sentiment and the index tracking expectations for future sales rose for a third month.

☆ Airbus urges suppliers to carry extra stocks amid output snags
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-09 | by ( Valerie Insinna | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Airbus currently has an ultimate goal of producing 75 of its best-selling family of A320neo single-aisle jets a month by the middle of the decade. Charbonneau also suggested that suppliers would bear the burden of carrying extra inventory to smooth any disruption, saying it was "very important" that suppliers create "buffer stocks" of critical items. "Ultimately, working capital in sub-tier suppliers could actually determine how many airplanes are going to get built," he said. Industry sources have said earlier plans for a sharp increase in output rattled suppliers worried about being left with surplus inventory and reluctant to carry surplus stock. The United States is Airbus' single largest supplier, with more than 2,000 U.S. companies located in about 40 states.

☆ 10 smart real-estate investing strategies to follow now as nationwide home prices begin falling, according to a housing industry guru and investor
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-07 | by ( Lisa Kailai Han | William Edwards | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

BiggerPockets' Dave Meyer predicts a year ripe with uncertainty for the real estate sector. Real estate investor and expert Dave Meyer has good news: national home prices are due for a decline in 2023. But alongside the coming correction, Meyer warned investors that the real estate sector will also include its fair share of obstacles and volatility this year. What's more, there's no one-size-fits-all approach to real estate investing, since housing markets are highly diverged between regions. Homebuyers need to stay calmIn addition to those three pieces of advice, Meyer shared seven more real estate investing strategies to consider this year in his 2023 real estate market outlook report.

☆ The overturn of Roe v. Wade has been a catastrophe for Republican attempts to win over Gen Z
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-06 | by ( Madison Hall | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The GOP win in getting the Supreme Court to strip abortion rights didn't sit well with young voters. For the survey, Murmuration polled 3,227 15 to 25-year-olds (members of Gen Z) and 1,036 adults aged 26 or older. The Gen Z survey had a 1.7% margin of error, while the survey of adults aged 26 years or older had one of 3%. Aside from "other," which also garnered 29%, abortion access was by far the most pressing issue amongst Gen Z. Since the Supreme Court punted abortion rights back to a state-to-state basis, referendums and constitutional amendments restricting abortion access will continue to pop up.

☆ People in this city spend the most on coffee—it's not New York or LA
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-03 | by ( Ryan Ermey | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

How much is your daily coffee habit really costing you? The city where espresso and steamed milk will cost you the most: Virginia Beach, Virginia, clocking in at $5.75 a cup, on average. The most expensive cups of cappuccino Virginia Beach, Virginia: $5.75 Las Vegas: $5.40 Minneapolis: $5.37 New York: $5.31 San Francisco: $5.21 That's just the outright cost. New York and San Francisco have expensive coffee, but their residents tend to make more money. If you express the cost of a five-days-a-week cappuccino habit as a percentage of a city resident's average income, the most expensive coffee cities change a bit.

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