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☆ Fearless Alcaraz can show next-gen how to topple Djokovic, say sports psychology experts
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-28 | by ( Shrivathsa Sridhar | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Florida-based Patrick Cohn, who teaches mental skills and sports psychology techniques to professional athletes, said he was not surprised Djokovic was still dominating the next generation. Cohn believes young players must rely on better preparation, tactics and develop a stronger mental game to topple Djokovic. I suggest to younger players that they view opponents as nameless and rankless." Former tennis player Jeff Greenwald, now a sports psychology consultant, said the Spanish world number two possessed rare qualities required to excel at the elite level. He will be a contender and likely one of the players who begins to take a bite out of Djokovic."

☆ Sky's the limit for Djokovic after matching Graf, say younger rivals
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Russian world number five Andrey Rublev said Djokovic had shown that anything is possible. "And at the age of 35, he still can be the best player in the world and break records," Rublev, 25, who lost to Djokovic in the Australian Open quarter-finals, told reporters in Doha. "If you do the things right, you can perform at the highest level ... age doesn't matter. Former world number two Alexander Zverev said Djokovic had shown how consistent he can be by dominating his rivals in the last decade. However, Zverev said that watching Graf being overtaken would be bittersweet for him.

☆ VC firm Counteract just reached first close on its $42 million carbon removal fund. We got an exclusive look at the 11-slide LP deck it used to secure cash from The Grantham Foundation.
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-17 | by ( Tasmin Lockwood | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

VC firm Counteract has reached first close on its inaugural £35 million fund. It plans to back 40 global companies across all elements of carbon removal. London-based firm Counteract, founded in 2021, has just reached first close on its inaugural £35 million, about $41.9 million, fund. Direct air capture is one of the best-known carbon removal technologies thanks to Swiss company Climeworks. Isaacs stressed the importance of exploring all potential technologies as carbon removal evolves alongside policy, making it inherently risky.

After a dearth of plant approvals last decade, developers have secured dozens of long-term contracts to finance new multibillion-dollar LNG plants. The United States was long an importer of LNG, but natural gas discoveries and production from the shale revolution flipped the country into an LNG exporter in 2016. U.S. LNG exports hit 10.6 billion cubic feet per day (bcfd) in 2022, making the country the second biggest LNG exporter behind Australia. But their production volumes will allow the United States to remain ahead of output from Australia and Qatar. The seven U.S. export plants already in service, including Freeport LNG, can turn about 13.8 billion cubic feet of gas into LNG each day.

☆ The inside story of how Microsoft caught up with Google on AI, and the unlikely executive who made it happen
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-10 | by ( Ashley Stewart | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

With OpenAI technology, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella is challenging Google's online search monopoly. "Who'd have thought, even just a few months ago, that Google would be on their back foot," said Soma Somasegar, a former Microsoft executive. Google was also busy incorporating machine-learning and other AI technology into popular products such as Google Photos, Google Translate, and its search engine. Microsoft's new Bing search engine uses a newer version of GPT-3 to answer complex questions. Microsoft's positive feedback loopThe OpenAI deal laid the foundation for Microsoft to catch Google in the AI race.

☆ VP Harris: Young people will 'leapfrog' this generation in climate change work because they won't face the question: 'Is this real?'
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-09 | by ( Catherine Clifford | In Catclifford | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

US Vice President Kamala Harris speaks about the administrations investments and actions to combat the climate crisis, at Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta, Georgia, on February 8, 2023. "Because, you know, especially for our younger leaders, the benefit that you have is you're not burdened by any question about, 'Is this real?'" Another 2021 survey showed that 59% of young people aged 16 to 25 years old around the globe are "very or extremely worried" about climate change and 84% are at least "moderately worried." Among other topics, Vice President Harris also spoke about electric vehicle and electric school bus use, water scarcity policy, and how climate change disproportionally impacts the most vulnerable in society. That migration, forced by climate change, may lead to conflict, she said.

☆ Microsoft packs Bing search engine, Edge browser with AI in big challenge to Google
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-07 | by ( Jeffrey Dastin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Microsoft is staking its future on AI through billions of dollars of investment as it directly challenges Alphabet Inc's (GOOGL.O) Google. “This technology is going to reshape pretty much every software category," Microsoft Chief Executive Satya Nadella told reporters in a briefing at Microsoft headquarters in Redmond, Washington. On Monday it unveiled a chatbot of its own called Bard, while it is planning to release AI for its search engine that can synthesize material when no simple answer exists online. PRACTICAL USESAt the event, Mehdi demonstrated how the AI-enhanced search engine will make shopping and creating emails much easier. For the quarter ending Dec. 31, Alphabet reported $42.6 billion in Google Search and other revenue, while Microsoft posted $3.2 billion from search and news advertising.

☆ A Mexico soccer icon entered politics. Prosecutors say narcos followed
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-03 | by ( Cuernavaca | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +27 min

Regional politicians, officials and military officers gathered in the Morelos state capital of Cuernavaca for breakfast in February 2022 to mark Mexico’s annual Army day. Mexican drug lords have a long tradition of buying off politicians in exchange for government protection of their illicit trade. Attempts to reach two of the alleged drug traffickers in the photo – Figueroa and Irving Solano Vera – were unsuccessful. Prosecutors in April asked the Morelos state congress to impeach Blanco so that he could be stripped of that shield. “He likes me very much because I’m not a politician,” Blanco told Reuters, in reference to the president.

☆ PSG extend Ligue 1 lead with Montpellier win as Mbappe limps off
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

PARIS, Feb 1 (Reuters) - Lionel Messi scored as Paris St Germain stretched their Ligue 1 lead to five points with a 3-1 win at Montpellier after Kylian Mbappe limped off the pitch on Wednesday. Following a lacklustre first half PSG burst into life after the break with Fabian Ruiz, Messi and Warren Zaire-Emery finding the net to put them on 51 points from 21 games. Mbappe had a night to forget at La Mosson, having had his spot-kick parried away by Benjamin Lecomte in the eighth minute. He had to take it again, only for the Montpellier keeper to deny him again. England Under-21 striker Folarin Balogun bagged a hat-trick to help Stade de Reims beat Lorient 4-2 and move top of the scorers' charts.

“Mission Hospital used to be where everyone would go if they wanted good care,” Jaquins said, reflecting on her previous experiences with the health care system. Sue Fischer is a longtime HCA employee who’s concerned about patient care in her facility. “We were a great system as Mission Health and we’re an even better system as HCA Mission Health,” she said. “Delays in care is the biggest patient care issue I see because of staffing,” Hernandez said. According to the CMS ranking system, Mission Hospital currently holds an above-average overall quality rating — four stars out of a possible five.

☆ 'Avatar 2' soars past 'Top Gun' with $1.5 billion to become highest-grossing film of 2022, and it's already the 10th biggest movie ever
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-06 | by ( Nicolas Vega | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

"Avatar: The Way of Water" has surpassed "Maverick's" box office haul in just its first three weeks in theaters, raking in an astonishing $1.51 billion worldwide since Dec. 16 according to Box Office Mojo data. Box office watchers don't expect "Avatar 2" to slow down any time soon. Along with the original "Avatar" ($2.92 billion) and "Titanic" ($2.2 billion), Cameron has now directed three of the 10 biggest blockbusters ever. "The first movie famously just kept going and going and going." "Avatar's" box office dominance wasn't a given from the outset.

☆ Google's popular program to turbocharge climate startups doesn't take equity and is open in Europe. Its sustainability boss explains how to land a spot.
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-15 | by ( Tasmin Lockwood | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Google for Startups has launched an equity-free climate change accelerator in Europe. The Google for Startups Accelerator: Climate Change program has launched in Europe after running for two years in North America. Some 21 startups have taken part in the original program, chosen out of a pool of "hundreds," according to Google. It comes as Europe continues to grapple with high energy prices; Google hopes the accelerator will help respond to the crisis. He is looking for agenda-setting solutions that help companies or individuals "really leapfrog" forward.

Private-sector efforts also have sprung up offering credits for "voluntary" carbon markets, while a range of registries such as Verra and Gold Standard is accrediting and tracking them. The new database - called the Climate Action Data Trust (CAD Trust) - aims to address these issues by collating all the project and carbon credit data in one place and making it free to the public. It brings us up to speed with what is required within the carbon markets," he said. He said Bhutan is in discussions with possible buyers who want details about how carbon credits from its forests are being registered, verified and monitored. "The CAD Trust meets all the technical requirements of host countries and buyers."

☆ Hasbro CEO says inflation won't ruin Christmas but Wall Street is worried
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-23 | by ( Paul R. La Monica | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

New York CNN Business —The holidays are rapidly approaching, and for the toy company Hasbro, a slowing economy could be a proverbial Grinch that steals Christmas. Before joining Hasbro, Cocks was an executive at Microsoft (MSFT) from 1999 through 2006 and 2008 through 2016. Cocks said Hasbro is investing “significantly” in digital toys, particularly digital versions of classic Hasbro board games like “Monopoly” and “Scrabble” as well as D&D and the company’s “Magic: The Gathering” game. It’s definitely been a boon for the game,” Cocks said. “If there’s a couple of truisms in life, there’s death, there’s taxes, and there’s parents wanting to have a great holiday for their kids.”

☆ NFL: Bills and Browns escape snowstorm in Buffalo
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-20 | by ( Hannah Brewitt | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

CNN —The Buffalo Bills (6-3) and Cleveland Browns (3-6) were supposed to square off at Highmark Stadium in Buffalo this Sunday. A contest with the 3-6 Browns could be exactly what this team needs to get back into the playoff conversation. Chiefs vs ChargersThe AFC West rival Kansas City Chiefs (7-3) and Los Angeles Chargers (5-4) face off for Sunday’s primetime event. Patrick Mahomes has been key to the Kansas City Chiefs' success. Australia: NFL Game Pass, ESPN, 7PlusBrazil: NFL Game Pass, ESPNCanada: CTV, TSN, RDS, NFL Game Pass on DAZNGermany: NFL Game Pass, ProSieben MAXX, DAZNMexico: NFL Game Pass, TUDN, ESPN, Fox Sports, Sky SportsUK: NFL Game Pass, Sky Sports, ITV, Channel 5US: NFL Game Pass, CBS Sports, Fox Sports, ESPN, Amazon Prime

The crypto giant FTX and its affiliated companies have started the process of filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, with founder Sam Bankman-Fried stepping down as CEO. Bankman-Fried sent out a series of tweets on Friday stating his hope that FTX would be able to continue as a going concern following its bankruptcy. Media outlets have reported that the Securities and Exchange Commission and Justice Department are now investigating FTX. In the days following the report, rival crypto exchange Binance announced it was liquidating its FTT holdings. Unable to find an out, FTX announced its bankruptcy filing Friday morning.

The ballot measure amended the state constitution to enshrine expansion for Medicaid health care coverage to all adults who earn up to 138% of the federal poverty level. Eliot Fishman, the senior director of health policy for the health care advocacy group Families USA, said that in South Dakota parents with practically any work income were ineligible for Medicaid. It took over two years, because advocates first pursued the process in South Dakota in October 2020. Supporters cheer for South Dakota Gov. Medicaid expansion, however, would not remain its focus.

☆ Bagnaia wins maiden MotoGP title as Ducati end 15-year drought
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Nov 6 (Reuters) - Ducati's Francesco Bagnaia won his maiden MotoGP world championship at the season-ending Valencia Grand Prix on Sunday after Fabio Quartararo failed to overhaul him in the standings. Defending champion Quartararo was 23 points behind Bagnaia going into the final race. The Yamaha rider needed nothing less than a victory to leapfrog the Italian but finished fourth in a race won by Suzuki's Alex Rins. Bagnaia was ninth, enough to retain his lead in the championship and give Ducati their first title since Casey Stoner won it in 2007, ending 15 years of dominance from Japanese manufacturers. Reporting by Rohith Nair in Bengaluru, Editing by David Goodman and Ed OsmondOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ De Bruyne puts Manchester City top, Liverpool suffer shock defeat
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-29 | by ( Martyn Herman | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Liverpool's second successive defeat against a team in the bottom three, following last week's reverse at Nottingham Forest, left them in ninth place, eight points off the top four. Chelsea also lost ground as Graham Potter's return to Brighton & Hove Albion ended in a 4-1 hammering. Manchester City have 29 points from 12 games, one point more than Arsenal who host bottom club Nottingham Forest on Sunday. Spurs moved to 26 points from 13 games with Newcastle, who have lost only once all season, on 24. Fulham could have moved level on points with Chelsea but were held to a 0-0 draw at home to Everton.

☆ I'm due to make $1,170 just by switching bank accounts. It only took 10 minutes to do it each time — here's how I did it.
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-26 | by ( Chris Stokel-Walker | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Faced with rising energy bills and double-digit inflation in the UK, every little bit can help, which is why I was drawn to the idea of switching bank accounts. By the time I realized this in mid-September, Santander had withdrawn its switching bonus offer. The bank also offered to credit my Santander account with a £50 payment by way of apology. By then, NatWest was already in the process of switching my First Direct account over, so I couldn't switch it to Santander. And you need savings, as some of the banks I used required £1,000 or more in the new accounts to get the switching bonus.

☆ Rory McIlroy fulfills promised return to world No.1 position after CJ Cup title defense
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-24 | by ( Jack Bantock | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —When Rory McIlroy won the 2021 CJ Cup, he insisted he was still capable of being the world’s best golfer. It marks the ninth occasion the 33-year-old McIlroy has held top spot in his career, with only Tiger Woods and Greg Norman – both 11-time No. Then ranked 8th in the world, McIlroy had given a tearful interview following Europe’s historic 19-9 loss at Whistling Straits, arguing he “should have done more”. If victory in his first subsequent outing had been his way of exorcising any Ryder Cup demons, the Northern Irishman has just gone from strength to strength this year. “I had a really rough Ryder Cup … I was outside the top-10 in the world, it’s not a position that I’m used to being in.

Since publication of opinion polls was banned two weeks ago the left-leaning, unaligned 5-Star Movement appears to have made significant progress while the rightist League is struggling, according to seven pollsters interviewed by Reuters. "I would put the likelihood of a rightist majority at 60-65%, which has shrunk from about 80% three weeks ago." Their estimates on the probability of a conservative win ranged from 70% right up to 100% forecast by Federico Benini, head of the Winpoll agency. Nonetheless, most pollsters agreed the split between 5-Star and the PD will wreck both parties' chances in the third of the parliamentary seats assigned by a first-past-the-post system. "Even the growth of the 5-Star, unless it is phenomenal growth, appears insufficient to prevent the centre-right from winning," said Lorenzo Pregliasco, head of the YouTrend agency.

☆ 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.

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