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☆ When a Walkable City Becomes a Death Trap
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-28 | by ( Ginia Bellafante | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +3 min

Last year saw 257 traffic fatalities in the city; just one fewer than there had been nine years ago, when Vision Zero began. The pandemic managed both to confirm and undermine New York’s reputation as the most walkable city in the country. Speeding and reckless driving were the leading causes of traffic deaths, and in 2021 they reached their highest point in the Vision Zero era. Nationally, there were more pedestrian deaths in 2021 than there had been in 40 years. Under Vision Zero, the Department of Transportation was tasked with identifying “priority corridors” — those stretches where pedestrian deaths and serious injuries are most concentrated.

☆ Dr. Fauci Looks Back: ‘Something Clearly Went Wrong’
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-24 | by ( David Wallace-Wells | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +55 min

Dr. Fauci Looks Back: ‘Something Clearly Went Wrong’ In his most extensive interview yet, Anthony Fauci wrestles with the hard lessons of the pandemic — and the decisions that will define his legacy. But when people say, “Fauci shut down the economy” — it wasn’t Fauci. But somehow or other, the general public didn’t get that feeling that the vulnerable are really, really heavily weighted toward the elderly. We also had a public-health system that we thought was really, really good. But it was really, really antiquated.

☆ The Earth has tilted on its axis differently over the last few decades due to melting ice caps
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-21 | by ( Aylin Woodward | Marianne Guenot | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Earth's axis — the invisible line around which it spins — is bookended by the north and south poles. But their geographic locations aren't fixed: As the Earth's axis moves, so do the poles. If you average out thousands of years of observation the Earth's axis points in a single direction — toward the North Star, also known as Polaris. The recent change to Earth's axis won't affect our everyday lives, but it could slightly tweak the length of our days. But let's be clear that this would be a tiny, tiny, tiny effect," he said.

☆ 2 former Barclays bankers just netted a 700% profit selling Bored Ape NFTs
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-24 | by ( George Glover | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Mike Anderson and Ovie Faruq offloaded their collection of Bored Ape Yacht Club NFTs this week. The 72 NFTs sold for $9.25 million, according to OpenSea data cited by Bloomberg. The former Barclays junk bond traders reportedly netted a 700% profit for the deal. The two traders' 700% profit still pales in comparison to what they could have made at the height of the crypto boom, according to Bloomberg. The publication estimated that Anderson and Faruq's Bored Ape collection was worth $30 million at the start of May 2022 – which would have netted them profits of just under 3,000%.

☆ Satellite images hint at scale of Russian mercenary group's losses in Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-25 | by ( Aina J. Khan | Aina Is A Freelance Reporter With Nbc News. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +3 min

The number of graves at a cemetery used by Russia's notorious mercenary Wagner Group has dramatically grown over the last two months, satellite images show. Satellite images show an increase in graves at a cemetery in Bakinskaya, Russia, from Nov. 24, 2022, to Jan. 24, 2023. The Wagner Group previously provided assistance to the Russian military during conflicts in Syria and Libya. The U.S. government said last week that it will designate Wagner Group as a “significant transnational criminal organization” and impose further sanctions against the organization and its support network. The Wagner Group did not comment on the satellite images and video footage.

☆ After a Bumpy Year, Renewable Energy Looks Poised for Boom Times
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-29 | by ( Dieter Holger | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +9 min

The future has never been brighter for renewable energy, as some of the snags that kept wind and solar production from going full throttle this year seem poised to ease. What is more, by early 2025, the IEA said it expects renewable energy to be the largest source of electricity in the global power mix, surpassing coal. Driving the IEA’s rosier outlook: First is the global energy crisis caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine that led European nations to try to build more renewable energy capacity within their borders to improve their energy security and replace Russian fuel imports. But the climate-and-spending bill’s support for growth of the solar industry should reverse the recent spikes in PPA costs, he said. GridsLong waits for permits and permissions to build new grid infrastructure remain a challenge to getting more renewable energy.

☆ What’s Your Savings Rate? These Banks Are Paying 10 Times the National Average
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-28 | by ( ) www.wsj.com time to read: +9 min

Savings accounts have followed suit, with many top accounts yielding 3%, or even 4%, up from less than 1% earlier this year. The average savings account still earns just 0.3%, according to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Accordingly, the highest APYs you can expect to find on savings accounts today are clustered close to that figure. If your main priority is simply the best rate, some online banks with less name recognition are pushing the envelope even further. Leon says digital institutions tend to be among the most competitive in their rates for CDs as well as savings accounts.

☆ China's economy looks different than it was going into the pandemic
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-22 | by ( Evelyn Cheng | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

China's exports started to fall year-on-year in October — for the first time since May 2020, according to Wind Information. Net exports had supported China's GDP growth over the last several years, contributing as much as 1.7 percentage points in 2021, the analysts said. But China's exports to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations have picked up, surpassing those to the U.S. and EU on a monthly basis in November, according to customs data. They expect ASEAN's GDP growth to rebound in 2023, while the U.S. and EU spend part of next year in recession. Jin pointed out that China's car exports, especially of electric cars and related parts, helped support overall exports this year.

☆ China Continues to Relax Covid Measures Even as Local Officials Battle Record Cases
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-16 | by ( Liyan Qi | Sha Hua | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Several cities said they would no longer carry out mandatory mass testing. SINGAPORE—A sevenfold surge in coronavirus infections over the past two weeks is testing China’s new policy of loosened measures that aim to reduce the impact of zero-Covid restrictions. On Wednesday, China reported almost 20,000 new locally transmitted Covid-19 cases, with infections recorded all over the country. While below the peak in April, when nine out of 10 cases nationwide were in Shanghai, the latest wave of infections has spread more widely, with multiple regions battling their biggest outbreaks of the pandemic.

☆ Nigeria is oil rich and energy poor. It can’t wait around for cheaper batteries
▼ + stars: | 2021-11-03 | by ( Hanna Ziady | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +15 min

But it’s coming under huge pressure from developed countries to abandon fossil fuels and shift to renewable energy in order to help save the climate. AKINTUNDE AKINLEYE/EPA-EFE/ShutterstockLike the United States, Europe and Britain, Nigeria sees a prominent role for renewable energy, notwithstanding its investments into gas power. “In Nigeria, clean energy is central to our government’s plan to transition to net-zero emissions,” Osinbajo, the vice president, continued. In Nigeria, energy poverty is itself a major driver of emissions, according to Olu Verheijen, the founder of Lagos-based energy advisory business Latimer Energy. This means that in some cases, certainly for Nigeria, gas has an important role to play in providing power.

Nearly 80% of American parents financially support their adult children, according to a 2018 Merrill Lynch survey. A 2018 Merrill Lynch survey revealed that 79% of US parents provide financial support to their adult children, contributing to $500 billion spent annually. According to the Merrill Lynch survey, parents today are largely helping out with food and groceries, cell phone bills, and car expenses. Many parents surveyed would make various financial sacrifices for their adult children. When it comes to homebuying, 26% of parents told Merrill Lynch they would help their child with a down payment.

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