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☆ NASA footage reveals 4 types of solar eruptions and 'holes' that could affect Earth as the sun grows more active
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-05 | by ( Morgan Mcfall-Johnsen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

The sun is slamming Earth with solar flares and high-speed eruptions of plasma. Solar flares can have the power of 1 billion hydrogen bombsA solar flare erupts — the bright flash on the bottom right of the sun — on March 28, 2023. NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory captured this image of a solar flare – as seen in the bright flash on the upper right – on March 3, 2023. CMEs are common culprits of solar storms on Earth, since they can send a powerful flood of solar particles washing over the planet. Coronal holes open a highway for solar windA video from NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory shows the massive hole in the sun's atmosphere.

☆ Mimicking the 19th Century in the Age of A.I.
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-03 | by ( Travis Diehl | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

Five of his 11 paintings on view at Petzel incorporate A.I.-generated imagery, mostly buried in abstract spills and smears. Indeed, Price conjured the pictures using A.I., printed them “wet” on plastic, then smeared the ink with his fingers, adding an inimitable human touch. This is the distinctive garbled diction of image-generators, which imitate the look of words but not necessarily their meaning. It sure looks like a vintage photo, though: a black and white, worn-looking picture of two women, one hunching enigmatically behind the other. Human anatomy, like words, can be tricky for image-generating A.I.’s.)

☆ How Gwyneth Paltrow Put Concussions On Trial
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-02 | by ( Mireille Silcoff | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

In March, on Day 7 of the Gwyneth Paltrow ski trial, after the court spectacle had already been branded everything from a “meme machine” to “the whitest trial of all time,” the retired optometrist Terry Sanderson sat in the witness box, somewhat deflated already. By that point, he probably knew that his pursuit of Paltrow for damages connected to a ski collision he said was her fault was a pretty bad idea. “This is a picture of you and your girlfriend, smiling big, right?”“Smile, camera, yup,” Sanderson replied. At a ski resort? As far as controversies go, the trial was as Diamond Life as you can get.

☆ Ralph Boston, Olympian Who Soared Into the Record Books, Dies at 83
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-01 | by ( Glenn Rifkin | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Ralph Boston, the Olympic long jump champion who, in August 1960, broke the track star Jesse Owens’s 25-year-old world record in the event, and a year later became the first jumper to break the 27-foot mark, died on Sunday at his home in Peachtree City, Ga., a suburb of Atlanta. Boston dominated the long jump through much of the 1960s by breaking or tying world records six more times over that span. A tall and sinewy Mississippian, he won a gold medal in the Rome Olympics in 1960, a silver medal in Tokyo in 1964 and a bronze in Mexico City in 1968. long jump title in 1960, when he was an emerging athlete at Tennessee State University (then known as the Tennessee Agricultural & Industrial State University). In August, he burst onto the national scene at a conditioning meet in Los Angeles that served as a final tuneup before the Rome Olympics.

☆ A solid start to earnings season will be put to the test in the week ahead
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-29 | by ( Zev Fima | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +14 min

The biggest week of this earnings season showed us that things aren't as bad as many feared. The week ahead of earnings, including several more Club names, should tell us more. The results are always important, but it's the guidance and management commentary we will really hone in on to better understand the path ahead. In Amazon's case, a solid first quarter for its AWS cloud business was overshadowed by management seeing a material slowdown in April. ET: Nonfarm Payrolls Looking back It was the biggest week of this earnings season for the Club as several of our mega-cap holdings and industry bellwethers reported results.

“In Canada we have way more wolves. But in Saskatchewan, where I live, the land is so flat and the timber is so dense that you rarely see them. You’re lucky if you see two wolves a year,” he says. “I come down here and I can see 15 a day, easily.”

☆ I've studied the sun for 23 years. Here's what happened during the last solar maximum and what to expect from this one.
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-25 | by ( Crystal Raypole | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Solar maximum is a peak in the sun's activity that happens around the middle of each solar cycle. Mathew OwensThe solar maximum represents a peak in solar activity when the sun's magnetic field reaches its strongest and most disordered and dynamic point. NASA/Solar Dynamics ObservatorySolar cycles typically last 11 years, and the solar maximum happens roughly in the middle of each cycle. The sun's magnetic field reaches peak strength during solar maximum, generating an increase in events like solar flares and coronal mass ejections. These bursts are around four times as likely to occur during a solar maximum than a solar minimum.

☆ Airlines are combating the pilot shortage by paying pilots more, making it easier to become one, and hiring from Australia
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-24 | by ( Taylor Rains | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

An ongoing pilot shortage has plagued US airlines since travel came roaring back post-pandemic. While some organizations — like the Regional Airline Association advocacy group — have praised the legalization, the Air Line Pilots Association has opposed it, Reuters reported. Increasing pilot payRegional flying has been particularly impacted by the pilot shortage, forcing airlines to slash dozens of flights to small markets and even ground regional jets. Other regional carriers like Mesa Airlines, Republic Airways, and Delta's wholly-owned airline Endeavor Air have also gotten pay increases. Lowering training requirementsRegional carrier Republic recently asked the FAA to reduce the flight hour requirement for pilots graduating from its LIFT pilot training academy.

☆ A powerful solar storm is hitting Earth, sparking stunning northern and southern lights across the planet. Here's how to see them tonight.
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-24 | by ( Marianne Guenot | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

A powerful G4 solar storm is hitting the Earth with winds as fast as 600 mph. Auroras seen in LaCrosse, Wisconsin, on March 24, 2023. NWS La CrosseThe spectacle also gave a treat to skygazers globally, with the lights seen across the UK, in the skies over Kyiv, Ukraine, and as far as Victoria, Australia. SANKA VIDANAGAMA/AFP via Getty ImagesThe powerful storm should continue until Monday evening. Storms like this aren't just prettyA view of the sun on April 21 shows the coronal mass ejection that caused the April 24 storm.

☆ Simone Biles and Jonathan Owens are married
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-22 | by ( Raja Razek | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +1 min

CNN —USA Gymnastics star and world champion Simone Biles and NFL player Jonathan Owens are married. Both shared images on social media Saturday announcing their marriage, and Biles now includes “Owens” in her full name on Instagram and Twitter. “I do,” Biles wrote on social media Saturday. “Officially Owens.”“My person, forever,” Owens wrote in a post of his own. Owens told Texas Monthly in 2021 that the Covid-19 shutdown created time for them to get to know each other better.

☆ Big Tech earnings, crucial inflation call — here comes the biggest week of earnings season
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-22 | by ( Zev Fima | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +9 min

Stocks stuck to a holding pattern this week as investors brace for an incoming wave of Big Tech earnings and the Fed's favorite inflation reading. Earnings reports have generally been better than expected so far this first quarter. Humana (HUM) reports before the bell Wednesday; Meta Platforms and Pioneer Natural Resources (PXD) report after the bell Wednesday. ET: Personal Spending & Income (includes PCE Price Index) Club trades this week Just one trade: We added 150 shares of Coterra Energy (CTRA) on Wednesday. As a subscriber to the CNBC Investing Club with Jim Cramer, you will receive a trade alert before Jim makes a trade.

NEW YORK, April 20 (Reuters) - The co-head of the private equity firm that owns Dominion Voting Systems said the company's $787.5 million settlement with Fox Corp (FOXA.O) held Fox accountable for spreading lies even if it did not apologize or admit wrongdoing. The settlement came with no apology or admission of wrongdoing on behalf of Fox, just an acknowledgement of the court's rulings finding some claims about Dominion to be false. Dominion and Staple Street achieved their goals by exposing the truth and Fox News' "offensive" actions and getting the media company to pay for them, Yaghoobzadeh said. In a statement following Tuesday's settlement, Fox said it was committed to the highest journalistic standards. Dominion funded the litigation through its own resources, without Staple Street or a third party providing financial backing, Yaghoobzadeh said.

Even before Tuesday's settlement, Staple Street's investment in Dominion had paid off handsomely. Yaghoobzadeh told reporters on Tuesday that Staple Street backed Dominion in its mission to shoot down lies against it. Staple Street investor Mark Hauser, managing partner of Hauser Private Equity, also welcomed the settlement news. "We are very pleased with the outcome and think that Staple Street has handled the situation very well on behalf of their investors. We’ve had a relationship with Staple Street since 2014 and think highly of their management team," he said.

☆ Wolf Watching Is a Great Hobby, If You Don’t Mind the Cold and the Carcasses
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-17 | by ( Angela Owens | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK, Wyo.– It’s just after 6 a.m. when Rick McIntyre pulls into a turnout on the side of the road. The sun hasn’t yet risen over the mountains and the thermometer on his dashboard reads minus 11 degrees. He shakes a pair of air-activated hand warmers and aims a dark-green spotting scope at the hills. At the base of the hills is an elk carcass, and somewhere in the trees above it, a small pack of wolves. The wolf watchers have arrived.

Administration officials believe the U.S., the world's largest oil consumer and global economy have entered a more predictable, less volatile phase. This year, gasoline prices have stabilized at lower levels, U.S. oil production is approaching record highs and the job market, while still strong, is cooling down along with inflation, administration officials say. Oil prices slipped on Thursday as the prospect of a possible recession in the US offset concerns of tight supply. Slowing economy or not, the OPEC move could still complicate Biden's efforts to tame nagging inflation and dampen gasoline prices at home, according to multiple interviews with U.S. officials and analysts. Discussions with refiners about expanding capacity or limiting fuel exports have dried up since last summer, oil executives told Reuters.

Administration officials believe the U.S. and global economy has now entered a more predictable, less volatile phase. This year, gasoline prices have stabilized at lower levels, U.S. oil production is approaching record highs and the job market, while still strong, is cooling down along with inflation, administration officials say. The OPEC move could complicate Biden's efforts to tame nagging inflation and dampen gasoline prices at home, according to multiple interviews with U.S. officials and analysts. The recent U.S. banking crisis has added another layer of uncertainty to global and U.S. forecasts as well, forecasters warn. Discussions with refiners about expanding capacity or limiting fuel exports have dried up since last summer, oil executives told Reuters.

☆ Tesla was ordered to pay $3.2 million in damages to a former employee in a racial discrimination case
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-04 | by ( Katherine Tangalakis-Lippert | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Former Tesla employee Owen Diaz was awarded $3.2 million in damages after suing the company. The verdict stems from a 2017 complaint that he faced racist abuse and Tesla failed to prevent it. Diaz had previously refused a $15 million award in the case and filed for this new trial. In 2021, Tesla was ordered to pay $137 million in damages over the suit, but the amount was slashed to $15 million by a judge who argued the previous jury had awarded an "unconstitutionally large" sum. In 2022, Owens rejected the $15 million award, instead opting for a new trial — this one, where he was ultimately awarded a lower amount.

☆ 'I would never go back': Why people love the 4-day workweek, which companies are hiring, and more
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-29 | by ( Cindy Perman | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

In fact, a whopping 92% of companies involved in the study said they planned to continue the four-day workweek. In the comments, readers who have tried a four-day work week talked about how it made them more efficient. The four-day workweek isn't for everyoneA shorter workweek is not going to work for all companies or every person, of course. 11 companies adopting a 4-day workweek that are hiring right nowThe companies involved in that six-month trial of the four-day workweek were primarily nonprofit and tech companies. That said, Yolanda Owens, a career expert at The Muse, cautions not to expect big companies to offer a four-day workweek.

☆ Giant 'holes' dozens of times the size of our planet are appearing on the sun. Here's how they could affect Earth.
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-29 | by ( Marianne Guenot | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +11 min

Two huge coronal holes, dozen of times the size of the Earth, have appeared on the sun. These coronal holes can spew solar winds at 1.8 million mph toward our planet, which can cause stunning auroras and disrupt satellites. Coronal holes aren't actually holes in the sunA coronal hole rotates across the face of the sun, streaming solar wind towards Earth, February 1, 2017. Coronal holes happen in the "corona," the atmosphere of the sun, and can only be seen in UV or X-ray light. We could see this month's coronal holes again next monthThe coronal hole came into view as the sun rotated.

☆ A second giant 'hole' has appeared on the sun, and it could send 1.8 million mph solar winds towards Earth
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-27 | by ( Marianne Guenot | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

These 'holes' can send 1.8 million mph solar winds towards Earth. As this first 'hole' begins rotating away from us, a new giant coronal hole — about 18 to 20 Earths' across — has come into view. Coronal holes release solar winds into space which can damage satellites and reveal stunning auroras if they reach the Earth. The 'hole' is positioned close to the sun's equatorThe coronal hole came into view as the sun rotated. The solar winds can blast very fast solar winds, with speeds of more than 800 kilometers per second, Verscharen said.

☆ Wyoming abortion ban blocked due to Obamacare-era amendment
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-24 | by ( Annika Kim Constantino | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Abortion is legal in Wyoming again, oddly enough as the result of a state constitutional amendment pushed by conservatives opposed to Obamacare more than a decade ago. Anti-abortion lawmakers in Wyoming have tried to work around the 2012 amendment in passing the ban on abortion. The state's sweeping ban, dubbed "Life is a Human Right Act," claims that abortion is not a form of health care. It's unclear whether the court will ultimately agree that the anti-Obamacare amendment prohibits a state abortion ban. For instance, a judge in Ohio in October temporarily blocked the state's abortion ban because of a constitutional provision adopted in 2011 as a backlash to Obamacare.

NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory captured a video of a tornado churning on the sun. The fiery formation of boiling solar plasma grew to an estimated height of 14 Earths. SDO/NASAThe magnetic structure that caused this tornado is actually a lot bigger than what we're seeing. As these move around the sun, they create magnetic fields that erupt through the solar surface. The sun is getting more activeA video from NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory shows the massive hole in the sun's atmosphere.

☆ The sun is getting more active than it has for a decade — and it could lead to power outages, grounded flights, and stunning auroras
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-22 | by ( Marianne Guenot | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +10 min

That motion, called convection, is what creates strong magnetic fields at the poles and smaller, local magnetic fields at the surface of the sun. That instability causes havoc in the magnetic fields at the surface of the sun, which become much more active. NASA/Solar Dynamics ObservatoryAs the magnetic fields become more confused, bigger sun spots can appear on the surface of the sun. As the sun's local magnetic fields get more tangled and crash into each other, they can explode. "The aurora oval that sits up over the northern and southern poles is a result of currents flowing in the Earth's atmosphere," Owens said.

☆ The 2 qualities that set introverts apart in job interviews: They're 'actually a strength'
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-21 | by ( Gili Malinsky | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

The job interview is a social endeavor. While some people thrive in social situations and love meeting new people, others find these interactions stressful and anxiety-provoking. For introverts, for example, the job interview can be especially taxing. 'Introverts are thoughtful listeners'"In general, introverts are thoughtful listeners who often need to think carefully about what they're going to say before speaking," says Frana. "Being an introvert is actually a strength because they do take that time to process and filter their responses," says Owens.

☆ Factbox: Ernie vs ChatGPT on global leaders
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-20 | by ( Eduardo Baptista | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

These were some of the summarized answers to questions Reuters posed to Ernie in Chinese, and ChatGPT in English, about world leaders:WHAT POLICIES HAS PRESIDENT XI JINPING INTRODUCED THAT ARE BENEFICIAL TO CHINA'S ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT? WHO ARE U.S. PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN'S RELATIVES? Ernie: "A relative of U.S. President Joe Biden is Valerie Biden Owens." ChatGPT: "President Joe Biden has a large and close-knit family," it says before naming Jill, Hunter, Ashley and Beau Biden and providing brief descriptions. "Joe Biden also has several grandchildren."

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