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☆ Woman wins $180K settlement against Minnesota hospital she said denied her a job because she's deaf
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-18 | by ( Minyvonne Burke | Minyvonne Burke Is A Senior Breaking News Reporter For Nbc News. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +3 min

A Minnesota hospital agreed to pay $180,000 to a woman who said the hospital refused to hire her for a job because she is deaf. Vogt said that in July 2020 she applied for a role as a greeter at North Memorial Health. The manager told Vogt that they would need to contact North Memorial Health about her disability, the suit said. A spokesperson for North Memorial Health could not immediately be reached Wednesday. The hospital said it was never given a name for the candidate and has no knowledge of what the manager told Vogt.

YouTube is taking back the reins from TikTok as the official title sponsor of VidCon, the biggest convention for social media creators and their fans. From 2013-2019, YouTube served as the primary partner of VidCon, which veteran YouTubers John and Hank Green created. Many on the featured creators roster, such as Charli D’Amelio and Khaby Lame, got their big breaks on TikTok, not YouTube. “We are thrilled to have them return as the title sponsor to help drive our mission of putting digital culture and its creators center stage. “The unique relationship and trust between YouTube creators, their fans and the digital industry is what sets our platform apart,” Stanford said in the statement.

☆ South Africa energy blackouts: Ramaphosa skips Davos to tackle crisis
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-18 | by ( Hanna Ziady | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

London CNN —South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa was forced this week to cancel a trip to Davos by an escalating energy crisis that is inflicting rolling blackouts on the continent’s most developed economy. At peak times, demand in South Africa averages between 28,000 MW and 34,000 MW. Electricity theft, including by impoverished townships in South Africa, and non-payment by municipal customers have made matters worse. Despite an abundance of sunshine and wind, South Africa still derives about 80% of its electricity from coal. South Africa’s National Energy Crisis Committee, a body run out of Ramaphosa’s office, has proposed several measures to ease the crisis in the short term, including importing energy from neighboring countries and buying excess energy from private producers.

☆ Over 200 millionaires urge Davos elite to up taxes on the ultra-rich
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-18 | by ( Ruxandra Iordache | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Over 200 millionaires are urging the elite echelons in attendance at this week's World Economic Forum in Davos to "tackle extreme wealth" and "tax the ultra-rich" to help relieve the cost-of-living strain off ordinary households. The letter questions the mission of the World Economic Forum in absence of concrete measures:"The current lack of action is gravely concerning. A meeting of the 'global elite' in Davos to discuss 'Cooperation in a Fragmented World' is pointless if you aren't challenging the root cause of division. CNBC has reached out to the Davos World Economic Forum for comment. Just one leader of the Group of Seven global economic — German Chancellor Olaf Scholz — was set to attend the Davos proceedings this week, as several of his counterparts battle the cost-of-living crisis.

☆ FTX says $415 million in crypto was hacked
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-17 | by ( Dietrich Knauth | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] The logo of FTX is seen at the entrance of the FTX Arena in Miami, Florida, U.S., November 12, 2022. REUTERS/Marco BelloJan 17 (Reuters) - Bankrupt crypto exchange FTX said in a report to creditors on Tuesday that about $415 million in cryptocurrency had been stolen as a result of hacks. Some $323 million in crypto had been hacked from FTX's international exchange and $90 million had been hacked from its U.S. exchange since it filed for bankruptcy on Nov. 11, CEO John Ray said in a separate statement on Tuesday. FTX told a bankruptcy judge in Delaware last week that it had recovered over $5 billion in crypto, cash and liquid securities, nine weeks after declaring bankruptcy. The crypto assets recovered to date include $685 million in Solana, $529 million in FTX's proprietary FTT token and $268 million in bitcoin, based on crypto prices on Nov. 11, 2022.

☆ GM reveals new Chevy Corvette E-Ray hybrid sports car, starting at over $104,000
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-17 | by ( Michael Wayland | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

In this article GM Follow your favorite stocks CREATE FREE ACCOUNT2024 Chevrolet Corvette E-Ray hybrid sports car GMDETROIT – General Motors' first-ever "electrified" Corvette will be available later this year starting at more than $104,000, the automaker said Tuesday. 2024 Chevrolet Corvette E-Ray hybrid sports car GMThe E-Ray is expected to be the only hybrid in GM's lineup when it arrives in dealer showrooms. The hybrid system was specifically designed for the eighth-generation Corvette, according to Harlan Charles, Chevrolet Corvette product marketing manager. GM decided on a hybrid Corvette instead of a PHEV because it offered better overall performance for the car. 2024 Chevrolet Corvette E-Ray hybrid sports car GM"The mission of this vehicle was performance, performance, performance," said Mike Kociba, lead Corvette development engineer.

☆ China reports 60,000 COVID-related deaths, says peak passed
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-14 | by ( Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +3 min

BEIJING — China on Saturday reported nearly 60,000 deaths in people who had COVID-19 since early December following complaints it was failing to release data, and said the “emergency peak” of its latest surge appears to have passed. The toll included 5,503 deaths due to respiratory failure caused by COVID-19 and 54,435 fatalities from other ailments combined with COVID-19 since Dec. 8, the National Health Commission announced. The report would more than double China’s official COVID-19 death toll to 10,775 since the disease was first detected in the central city of Wuhan in late 2019. China has counted only deaths from pneumonia or respiratory failure in its official COVID-19 death toll, a narrow definition that excludes many deaths that would be attributed to COVID-19 in other places. “These data show the national emergency peak has passed,” Jiao said at a news conference.

☆ China's COVID fever and emergency hospitalisations have peaked, health official says
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/2] Patients receive IV drip treatment at a community health service centre, amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, in Shanghai, China January 9, 2023. cnsphoto via REUTERSSHANGHAI, Jan 14 (Reuters) - COVID fever and emergency hospitalisations have peaked in China and the number of hospitalised COVID patients is continuing to decline, a Chinese health official said on Saturday. Nationwide, "the number of fever clinic visitors is generally in a declining trend after peaking, both in cities and rural areas," Jiao Yahui, an official from the National Health Commission, told a news conference. Jiao said the number of emergency treatment patients was also declining and the ratio of patients who had tested positive for COVID-19 was steadily falling as well. The number of severe cases has also peaked, she added, though remained at a high level, and patients were mostly elderly. Wen Daxiang, a Shanghai Health Commission official, said China would strengthen health monitoring and management of the high-risk population.

☆ Black rappers call out double standard of using hip-hop lyrics as evidence in rapper Young Thug’s criminal trial
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-13 | by ( Safia Samee Ali | Safia Samee Ali Is A Reporter For Nbc News Digital | Based In Chicago. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +11 min

Authorities had no physical evidence or weapon that linked Phipps to the shooting, and the then 22-year-old had no criminal record. Through her research Kubrin has found bias against rap music and artists, she said, adding that much of that bias is racialized. That means using lyrics from rap music, a historically Black genre, can infect jurors with anti-Black racism regardless of whether the defendant himself is Black, she said. Defending the practiceFulton County prosecutor Fani Willis, whose office is trying the case against Young Thug and other YSL members, has defended using music lyrics in trials. Gavin Newsom signed the Decriminalizing Artistic Expression Act, which made it the first state to restrict the use of rap lyrics as evidence in state court.

☆ Google says India antitrust ruling to drive up costs for app developers
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Jan 13 (Reuters) - Alphabet Inc's (GOOGL.O) Google said on Friday that India's new antitrust order to change how the company markets its Android platform will drive up costs for app developers, equipment makers, and consequently, consumers. The Competition Commission of India (CCI) in October fined Google $161 million for exploiting its dominant position in Android, and asked it to change restrictions imposed on smartphone makers related to pre-installing apps. Google licenses its Android system to smartphone makers, but critics say that its imposition of restrictions, such as the mandatory pre-installation of its own apps, is anti-competitive. Reuters reported earlier this month that Google warned in a Supreme Court challenge to the order that Android ecosystem's growth in India was on the brink of stalling due to the order. Reporting by Tiyashi Datta in Bengaluru; Editing by Shailesh Kuber and Devika SyamnathOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Shopify is making moves to woo multimillion-dollar businesses. It's a big change to its identity as a small business champion it established during the pandemic.
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-13 | by ( Madeline Stone | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

With the move to Commerce Components, Shopify could target merchants with sales that are more in the $500 million range, Wong said. For Commerce Components, Shopify has already partnered with Mattel, which generated nearly $5.5 billion in sales for 2021. For a subscription fee, Shopify merchants get access to tools to build an online store, ship out products, and process payments. To convince large retailers to use its product, Shopify must show them it has an edge over legacy software platforms. At the same time, it has launched other products, like its advertising product Shopify Audiences, that are available only to larger merchants using Shopify Plus.

NEW DELHI, Jan 12 (Reuters) - Google has been jolted after the Indian antitrust authority sought changes to how it markets its Android system, which powers 97% of smartphones in the world's second biggest mobile market. * Google should not impose any curbs in India on the practice of "sideloading", or downloading apps without using its app store. * Competitors and app developers should not be denied access to the programming interface of Google Play services, the underlying software system that powers Android devices. This directive is meant to ensure compatibility between apps on Play Store and third-party app stores based on Android variants, the antitrust authority has said. * The CCI asked Google not to restrict makers of Android smartphones from developing other devices, such as tablets or TVs based on modified versions of Android.

The U.S. Commodities Futures Trading Commission has estimated missing customer funds at more than $8 billion. The affiliates -- LedgerX, Embed, FTX Japan and FTX Europe -- are relatively independent from the broader FTX group, and each has its own segregated customer accounts and separate management teams, according to FTX court filings. In part to preserve the value of its businesses, FTX also sought Dorsey's approval to keep secret 9 million FTX customer names. Dorsey allowed the names to remain under wraps for only three months, not six months as FTX wanted. In addition to customer funds lost, the collapse of the company has also likely wiped out equity investors.

☆ Disney names former Nike CEO Mark Parker as its next chairman
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-11 | by ( Matthew Kish | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Former Nike CEO Mark Parker will become chairman of The Walt Disney Co. on March 9. Parker remains executive chairman of Nike, where he was CEO from 2006 to 2020. Parker, who's been on Disney's board for seven years, also serves as executive chairman of Nike. The move comes less than two months after Bob Iger returned as Disney's CEO. Parker served as CEO of Nike from 2006 t0 2020, a period of enormous growth for the sportswear brand.

But "we should 'stick to our knitting' and not wander off to pursue perceived social benefits that are not tightly linked to our statutory goals and authorities," Powell said. "Taking on new goals, however worthy, without a clear statutory mandate would undermine the case for our independence." "Decisions about policies to directly address climate change should be made by the elected branches of government and thus reflect the public's will as expressed through elections," he told the forum in Stockholm. Powell's comments, particularly about climate change, are not new. When it comes to inflation, however, Powell said it was critical the Fed retain the ability to manage as it sees fit - raising interest rates to control inflation even if that means slower growth and higher unemployment.

☆ British scientists plan to expand genomic sequencing from COVID to flu
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-10 | by ( Jennifer Rigby | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

NEXU Science Communication/via REUTERSLONDON, Jan 10 (Reuters) - Genomic sequencing allowed the world to track new coronavirus variants throughout the pandemic. Now British researchers plan to use it to better understand a host of other respiratory pathogens, from influenza to respiratory syncytial virus (RSV). The work will begin later this year by using leftover material from swabs taken for COVID-19 diagnostic purposes, sequencing SARS-CoV-2, influenza, RSV and other common respiratory viruses in a combined process. While some of the viruses targeted typically cause mild, cold-like symptoms, others can cause serious illness, particularly in vulnerable populations. The five-year initiative aims to begin work from spring this year and is funded by Wellcome.

The Competition Commission of India (CCI) in October fined Alphabet Inc-owned Google (GOOGL.O) $161 million for exploiting its dominant position in Android, which powers 97% of smartphones in India, and asked it to change restrictions imposed on smartphone makers related to pre-installing apps. "Google will be required to make far-reaching changes to the Android mobile platform which has been in place for the last 14-15 years." Google licenses its Android system to smartphone makers, but critics say it imposes restrictions like mandatory pre-installation of its own apps that are anti-competitive. The CCI in October ordered Google to not prohibit un-installing of its apps by Android phone users in India -- currently, one can't delete apps such as Google Maps or YouTube from their Android phones when they come pre-installed. "No other jurisdiction has ever asked for such far-reaching changes based on similar conduct," Google said in its court submissions.

☆ Detained Nicaraguan Catholic bishop, Ortega critic to face trial
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MANAGUA, Jan 10 (Reuters) - A prominent Catholic bishop in Nicaragua who has sharply criticized authoritarian President Daniel Ortega will go to trial while under house arrest, a judge ruled on Tuesday, in the latest clamp down on dissent in the country. Human rights organizations accuse Ortega's government of persecuting the Catholic Church. Another prominent cleric, Bishop Silvio Baez, is in exile in the United States along with a number of other priests who have fled. The president has accused Catholic leaders of trying to overthrow him in a "coup" following anti-Ortega street protests that began in 2018. But as tensions have intensified, Ortega officials have expelled Catholic nuns and missionaries and shuttered more than a dozen Catholic radio and television stations.

☆ English resort counts down to western Europe’s first satellite launch
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-09 | by ( ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +4 min

NEWQUAY, England, — An English surfing resort was counting down to the first launch of orbital satellites into space from western Europe on Monday, when Virgin Orbit’s mission will transform the Cornish town of Newquay into the country’s first spaceport. The “horizontal” launch will catapult the resort in southwest England, population 20,000 and famous for its reliable waves rolling off the Atlantic, into the limelight as western Europe’s go-to destination for small satellites. Virgin Orbit, part-owned by billionaire Richard Branson, said nine satellites would be deployed into lower Earth orbit (LEO) from its LauncherOne rocket in its first mission outside its United States base. “Assuming that everything continues to look good we’re currently tracking well for launch,” a Virgin Orbit spokeswoman said on Sunday. The LEO sector is growing rapidly, spurred by satellite broadband companies such as Elon Musk’s Starlink, Amazon and London-headquartered OneWeb.

☆ AstraZeneca to Buy U.S. Cardiorenal-Drug Maker
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-09 | by ( Joseph Hoppe | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +1 min

Anglo-Swedish pharma giant AstraZeneca PLC has agreed to buy CinCor Pharma Inc., including global rights to its baxdrostat cardiorenal drug, for an upfront transaction value of around $1.3 billion. It has also committed to a further $10 a share in cash, payable upon a specified regulatory submission of a baxdrostat product. AstraZeneca said the acquisition will bolster its cardiorenal pipeline by adding baxdrostat, an inhibitor that has shown promise in clinical trials lowering blood pressure in treatment-resistant hypertension. The upfront cash portion of the acquisition represents a 121% premium to CinCor’s closing market price of $11.78 on Friday. Combined, the upfront and so-called maximum potential contingent value payments represent a transaction value of around $1.8 billion.

☆ AstraZeneca to buy U.S.-based CinCor Pharma in $1.8 bln deal
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

Jan 9 (Reuters) - AstraZeneca (AZN.L) said on Monday it will buy U.S.-based clinical-stage biopharmaceutical firm CinCor Pharma Inc (CINC.O) in a deal valued at about $1.8 billion to strengthen its pipeline of heart and kidney drugs. AstraZeneca said it will pay $26 per CinCor share in cash, a premium of nearly 121% to the stock's closing price on Friday. The offer also includes a non-tradable contingent value right of $10 per share in cash payable upon a specified regulatory submission of CinCor's baxdrostat, which is being developed to treat cardiorenal diseases. Including this, the offer represent a 206% premium to CinCor's shares close on Friday. Reporting by Radhika Anilkumar in Bengaluru; Editing by Savio D'SouzaOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ English resort counts down to western Europe's first satellite launch
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-09 | by ( Henry Nicholls | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

REUTERS/Henry NichollsNEWQUAY, England, Jan 9 (Reuters) - An English surfing resort was counting down to the first launch of orbital satellites into space from western Europe on Monday, when Virgin Orbit's mission will transform the Cornish town of Newquay into the country's first spaceport. The "horizontal" launch will catapult the resort in southwest England, population 20,000 and famous for its reliable waves rolling off the Atlantic, into the limelight as western Europe's go-to destination for small satellites. The European Space Agency's (ESA) Ariane 6 rocket, designed to carry large satellites, has also had delays. "Assuming that everything continues to look good we're currently tracking well for launch," a Virgin Orbit spokeswoman said on Sunday. The LEO sector is growing rapidly, spurred by satellite broadband companies such as Elon Musk's Starlink, Amazon and London-headquartered OneWeb.

NEW DELHI, Jan 7 (Reuters) - Google has filed a legal challenge in India's Supreme Court to block a ruling by the country's antitrust watchdog that will force the U.S. company to change how it markets its Android platform, court records showed on Saturday. The challenge comes after Google suffered a setback on Wednesday when an appeals tribunal rejected its request to block the antitrust ruling. The company argued that implementation of the CCI's directives will hurt its long-standing business model and consumer interests. Supreme Court records show Google filed a challenge against the tribunal ruling on Saturday. Google's Supreme Court filing seeks to put the CCI decison on hold while its appeal is heard, said one person familiar with the matter on Saturday.

☆ How Anti-Abortion Activists Bought Access to the Supreme Court
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-07 | by ( Katherine Long | Jack Newsham | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +29 min

In exchange for as little as a few thousand dollars in contributions to the nonprofit, these people received easy access to events where Supreme Court justices would be. Supreme Court Historical society trustee Jay Sekulow, center, represented President Trump during the latter's impeachment trial in 2020. Anti-abortion advocates cheer in front of the Supreme Court after the decision in Burwell v. Hobby Lobby Stores was announced in 2014. Alito did not respond to a request for comment on his involvement in the Supreme Court Historical Society. Supreme Court justices, though, aren't even required to stay within those weak guardrails because no code of ethics governs justices' behavior.

☆ Ex-USC official involved in 'Varsity Blues' scandal gets six months in prison
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-06 | by ( The Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +2 min

BOSTON — A former University of Southern California athletics department official who accepted bribes from the ringleader of a nationwide college admissions scandal to help get often unqualified students into the school as sports recruits was sentenced Friday to six months in prison. Donna Heinel was also sentenced in U.S. District Court in Boston to two years of probation and was ordered to forfeit $160,000. The scheme involved bribes, embellished athletic accomplishments and entrance exam cheating to get the often unqualified children from wealthy families into some of the nation’s most prestigious universities. Heinel, Southern California’s former senior associate athletic director, pleaded guilty in November 2021 to a charge of honest services wire fraud. But it is also the product of the pressures put upon her by a dysfunctional university school system at USC, and the powerful men who inhabited her orbit.”

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