Steve Jobs Gives Posthumous Testimony In Apple Trial | ||
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New York (AFP) - Three years after the tech world mourned his passing, Apple mastermind Steve Jobs was back from the dead giving posthumous testimony in a video at a US antitrust trial. Jurors in an Oakland court have been submerged since the beginning of the week in a debate over whether consumers who bought Apple's iPod between 2006 and 2009 were effectively forced to purchase their music from the California titan's online iTunes store. Jobs' testimony from a few months before his death in October 2011 was played at the hearing Friday. In excerpts published by online news site "The Verge," he said that Apple was "very concerned" about retaliatory measures that could be taken by record companies if songs purchased in iTunes and downloaded to an iPod were then copied onto somebody else's computer. "We went to great pains to make sure that people couldn't hack into our digital rights management system because if they could, we would get nasty emails from the labels threatening us that they were going to yank the license," Jobs said. He argued that "lots of hackers" were trying to break into the system, and as a result, Apple had to be constantly "revving the iTunes and iPod software, closing any holes that might be in it, or any problems it might have." If these changes meant that competitors became locked out, then they were only "collateral damage," he said. Plaintiffs in the class-action suit argued that the repeat changes prevented other online music stores -- and potentially less expensive ones at that -- from adapting their own systems fast enough for their music to be used on the iPod. This, they said, meant iPod owners had to make purchases on iTunes. The plaintiffs are claiming $350 million in damages. US law allows the judge to triple that sum. The trial continues next week. Jobs died at the age of 56 after battling cancer for several years. His death came less than two months after ceding company leadership to Apple's current CEO Tim Cook.
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Hackers Target Sony Again With Email To Staff Threatening Their Families (ADR) | ||
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Sony staffers, reeling from a devastating hacking scandal, have received threatening emails from self-alleged hackers called the "Guardians of Peace" or GOP, reports USA Today. Those emails allegedly threaten employees' families if they don't support GOP's goals. "We understand that some of our employees have received an email claiming to be from GOP," a Sony spokesperson told USA TODAY. "We are aware of the situation and are working with law enforcement." The GOP seems to take issue with Sony Pictures' corporate practices, including its production of "The Interview," a forthcoming comedy about the assassination of North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un. An alleged GOP representative told Salted Hash that GOP isn't a state actor: "We are an international organization including famous figures in the politics and society from several nations such as United States, United Kingdom and France. We are not under direction of any state. "Our aim is not at the film The Interview as Sony Pictures suggests. But it is widely reported as if our activity is related to The Interview. This shows how dangerous film The Interview is. The Interview is very dangerous enough to cause a massive hack attack. Sony Pictures produced the film harming the regional peace and security and violating human rights for money. "The news with The Interview fully acquaints us with the crimes of Sony Pictures. Like this, their activity is contrary to our philosophy. We struggle to fight against such greed of Sony Pictures." Sony has alleged that the hackers, who leaked celebrity and studio executive salaries, come from North Korea. North Korea has denied involvement in the attack, which also leaked a number of company's upcoming films. Here's the full (and slightly incoherent) email sent to Sony employees, via Variety:
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Y Combinator Partner Explains How To Ask For Millions Of Dollars From A Stranger In 30 Seconds | ||
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He’s the cofounder of Justin.tv, the online broadcasting site that changed its name to Twitch and sold to Amazon for $970 million this year. He was also the cofounder and CEO of Socialcam, a video-sharing app that was acquired by Autodesk for $60 million in 2012. Seibel gave a presentation at Stanford last week as part of Y Combinator President Sam Altman’s class, “How to Start a Startup.” He went over a few things on how to pitch investors, but what really stood out was his approach to the 30-second pitch. “You need to be armed with this constantly ... It’s magic,” Seibel says. Seibel says every entrepreneur should have a strong 30-second pitch ready in three simple sentences: - What your company does: You have to explain what your company does in one simple sentence. Assume the investors know absolutely “nothing about anything.” Apply the “Mom test,” where you have to tell your mom what you do in one, super simple sentence. “Everyone I meet for the first time screws this up … use simple language, it’s very important.” Seibel says. - How big is your market: Do some research and pick the industry your product is in — and come up with a dollar figure amount for the size of the market. “Investors like to hear that you’re in a multi-billion dollar market … these are simple numbers to look up on Google. Don’t skip this step,” he says. - How much traction do you have: Come up with a sentence that explains your monthly growth rate in terms of sales and number of users. If you haven’t launched your product and don’t have those figures, at least show how quickly you’re planning to move from your beta to official product. “Convince the investor that you guys are moving fast and that this isn’t some long slog…you’re thinking about it like a startup where you can move fast and make mistakes,” he says.
With these three sentences, Seibel says every entrepreneur should be able to quickly explain what the company does, and start a conversation with investors. Once you’re done with this step, you then move on to the 2-minute pitch, which requires more insight like competitive advantage, business model, team experience, and fundraising terms. But what’s next after the 2-minute pitch? Nothing. Seibel says 10- and 30-minute pitches or hour pitches are “all garbage,” because you can get everything nailed down in just 2 minutes. “One thing I like to tell founders is the more you talk, the more you have an opportunity to say something that people don't like. Talk less and it will probably be better,” he says. SEE ALSO: The Billionaire Founder Of LinkedIn Explains How To Run A Great Startup Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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Michael Seibel, a partner at Y Combinator, has a pretty good track record when it comes to running startups. 
REPORT: Grocery Startup Instacart Is Raising $100-Plus Million At A $2 Billion Valuation | ||
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Instacart, a grocery-delivery startup, is reportedly raising a Series C round of more than $100 million at a valuation of $2 billion, sources told TechCrunch. That's a pretty big valuation leap from June, when the company raised $44 million at a valuation of $400 million. The company has raised $154.8 million total. Instacart, which launched two years ago, currently delivers groceries in about an hour to people in 10 different cities, with a delivery fee of $5.99 for one-hour delivery and $3.99 for two-hour delivery. It's one of several startups trying to tackle the speedy-delivery space, including New York-based WunWun, which delivers small orders of groceries and other goods without a delivery fee in under an hour, and FreshDirect, which delivers to the Northeast with a delivery fee of up to $7.99 for next-day service. Big players like Google, with Shopping Express, and Amazon, with AmazonFresh, are also experimenting with same-day grocery delivery. Both can bring customers their goods same-day, but with longer delivery windows than Instacart's or WunWun's. TechCrunch's sources indicated that Kleiner Perkins could be leading the round. Business Insider reached out to Instacart for comment and will update if we hear back.
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Apple Could Face iPhone 6 Shortages Next Year (AAPL) | ||
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The iPhone 6 could be harder to find next year as Apple shifts its production ratio toward the 6 Plus, according to UBS analyst Steven Milunovich. "Given the ramp in [December] we do expect a sequential decline of 40% or so in March, mostly in the smaller iPhone 6," he said. "We think interest in the larger 6 Plus may be greater than Apple expected, necessitating a mix shift." Asia, particularly China, is driving demand for the 6 Plus. Barclays recently predicted a strong demand for the 6 Plus this spring, coinciding with the gift-giving during Chinese New Year. Apple initially underestimated demand for the 6 Plus, resulting in supply shortages. UBS pointed not only to demand in China, but in the States as well. "Sales in the US have been 3-to-1 in favor of the smaller iPhone 6, but that may be underestimating true 6 Plus demand given tight supply," said Milunovich. We'll have to wait until next year to see if Apple can ramp up 6 Plus production without sacrificing iPhone 6 sales. SEE ALSO: Here's Apple's Next Great Business Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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There's A Reason It Seems Like Everyone Is Always Staring At Their Smartphones | ||
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If it feels like everyone is looking at their phone all the time, it's because they are. Mobile is the only form of media that's gaining share of our attention, as you can see in this chart from BI Intelligence.
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Windows 10 Could Be A Smash Hit Available In Summer (MSFT) | ||
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Microsoft is on track to deliver Windows 10, its next version of Windows, as early as the late summer, COO Kevin Turner told attendees of the Credit Suisse Technology Conference on Thursday. The company has been showing off the new OS for the past few months, mostly playing up the features that businesses are going to love. And most of those features, so far, involve bringing things back from Windows 7. That's important because businesses have for the most part ignored Windows 8, preferring Windows 7 instead. Even when they buy new PCs, which they've done in droves this year, when Microsoft retired support for XP. Turner says that in the spring, Microsoft will start showing off new consumer features in Windows 10. Developers will get their hands on a preview version, too, in the spring, giving them a chance to write apps. Surely that will happen at Microsoft's annual developer's conference, Microsoft Build, which begins April 29. With Microsoft's major reorg, the company has changed the way it builds Windows. It is sending versions of Windows 10 out continuously to anyone who wants to play with it, asking for feedback. That happens through the Windows Insider program. So, a developer preview version shouldn't be the first time programmers see Windows 10. This also means Windows could get to market faster than ever before. Microsoft may even have Windows 10 out for the back-to-school PC shopping season. Here's what Turner said: The thing I want to tell you about on Windows 10 is the Windows 10 timeframe. We plan to talk about the end user consumer experiences in the early spring, we’ll have a developer preview and be able to talk to that in depth in the early summer timeframe. And then by late summer and early fall, we’ll be able to bring out this particular OS. That’s the current plan of record. He also talked about another interesting phenom going at Microsoft right now. On the one hand, CEO Satya Nadella is very firmly pushing Microsoft into the post-PC era, rolling out new cloud services and apps that run on any devices, any operating system. The more operating systems supported by these apps, the better. On the other, thanks to the major reorganization of the company, Windows "is now the third biggest entity within our company behind the Office franchise and our enterprise franchise," Turner said. The "enterprise franchise" refers to all the software products used by IT, things like Microsoft's database SQL Server, and its tech management tools, System Center. With Windows still being the third biggest thing at Microsoft, Turner emphasized that it's still "a big important franchise for us as a company." So at Microsoft, the mantra seems to be Windows ISN'T DEAD YET. LONG LIVE THE CLOUD! And for that to happen, Windows 10 needs to be a hit. Not only do businesses need to love it, but Microsoft has an ambitious new plan for developers, Turner emphasized. They'll be able to write one app and it will run on any Windows 10 device: phone/tablet, PC, Xbox, or Internet of Things device. That's a developer's nirvana known a "Universal Windows Apps." If it works as advertised, Windows 10 will be overflowing with cool new apps and will rise from the ashes of Windows 8, stronger than ever. SEE ALSO: 20 Incredibly Useful Free Apps From Microsoft Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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Silicon Valley's Biggest Homeless Camp Has Been Broken Up, And The Photos Are Devastating | ||
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Though Silicon Valley is home to some of the wealthiest people in the world, the area also has one of the worst levels of income disparity in the country. According to the latest data from the US Department of Housing, Santa Clara County has the highest percentage of homelessness in all of America. "The Jungle" is a 68-acre encampment where as many as 200 homeless people have lived in makeshift structures not far from the headquarters of major tech companies like Google and Apple. This week, the city of San Jose began the process of dismantling the camp and evicting its residents, a third of whom have not been promised a place in a shelter. Reuters photographer Beck Diefenbach captured the scene as people were forced to collect their belongings and leave. The Jungle isn't far from the headquarters of tech giants like Apple, Adobe, and Google, and wealthy executives own mansions nearby. Some locals call the gap between the tech industry and the homeless population the "Great Divide." The city warned residents that they would be evicted just three days before it happened. "It was a change in approach," Ray Bramson, San Jose's homelessness response manager, said to Reuters. "Historically we'd come in and clean the site and people would come back and repopulate it. We realized that we needed to deal with the underlying issue creating the encampment, which is homelessness." Dismantling the camp was the second part of a $4 million project by the city, who had spent the last 18 months finding shelters where the homeless could be placed. See the rest of the story at Business Insider  | ||
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The One Question Larry Page Always Asks Himself To Make Sure Google Stays Successful | ||
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Google currently employs about 55,000 people around the world, but there's one thing that CEO Larry Page started asking himself way back in the early days. "I'm always asking the question, as the company has grown from a hundred people, 'Would I want to work for Google?'" Page told Fortune's Miguel Helft. Page says a big part of his focus and duty at the company is making sure Google is a good environment for people who are curious, entrepreneurial, and looking to have an impact on the world. Page is a big believer in moonshots — ideas that push technology forward by 10x. "If I look at most of the tech companies that I felt have kind of reached a plateau or have generally atrophied or something like that, I would say 'no,' they weren’t a good home for people who wanted to do those things," he said. "In general they kind of kept doing the same thing, kind of eking out a little bit more scale but not really being a place where people want to continue to really do impactful things." In the book "How Google Works," former CEO Eric Schmidt and SVP Jonathan Rosenberg write that hiring "smart creative" employees and creating an environment where they can thrive is one of the most important things a company can do to become successful. By having Google work on big moonshot projects like smart contact lenses, self-driving cars, internet-bearing balloons, and humanoid robots, Page hops to keep the answer to his question, "yes." Page doesn't want Google to stop being innovative, bold bets, and when discussing ideas with him, Google X exec Andy Conrad said "you feel terrified, inspired, and nurtured at the same time." SEE ALSO: Google Just Made It Much Easier To Prove You're Not A Robot Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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UBS: iPhone Sales Are Skyrocketing (AAPL) | ||
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iPhone sales may easily surpass Wall Street's estimates for this quarter, according to a UBS note published Friday. The bank predicts Apple could sell nearly 70.9 million iPhones before the end of the year, up from the Street's consensus of 64 million. UBS also raised Apple's stock price target to $125, up from $115.46. Other banks have suggested Apple's stock will continue its upward tear. This week Barclays raised its price target to $140, up from $120. UBS' prediction is based on a new model. One factor of that model, but not the only factor, comes from weighted Google search results from over 20 countries. UBS points out that its new model was consistently closer to actual iPhone sales when back tested against Wall Street's consensus estimate. SEE ALSO: A Developer Perfectly Summed Up The Limitations Of The Apple Watch Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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Google Puts Hollywood To Shame With This High-Tech Studio That YouTubers Can Use For Free | ||
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But now there's a lot that YouTube creators can do to improve the quality of their channels. YouTube itself has invested in its creators in a number of ways, launching national ad campaigns and providing venture capital to top channels. The company has also opened YouTube Spaces in Los Angeles, New York City, London, and Tokyo, where YouTube creators with at least 10,000 subscribers can use sound stages, editing bays, and camera equipment for free. "We invest in our creators in a myriad of ways, and the Space is a tangible resource that can help creators towards their goal of building a business on YouTube," Liam Collins, head of the YouTube Space LA, said to Business Insider. We visited the YouTube Space in Los Angeles to see those resources firsthand. The studio, which was designed by architecture and design firm HLW, had plenty of fun features to explore. The YouTube Space Los Angeles, located in the city's Playa Vista neighborhood, officially opened in January 2013. The studio is part of a cluster of buildings that were once a hub for Howard Hughes' aircraft company. A helicopter in the courtyard pays homage to the area's aviation roots. Totaling 41,000 square feet of space, the building has production stages, green screens, cameras, and electrical and grip equipment. This stage can accommodate audiences of between 100 and 150 people and has hosted a number of interesting setups. One Direction recently did a seven-hour livestream event from this stage, and Legendary Pictures brought massive sets from "Godzilla" for YouTube creators to play around with. Watch the One Direction videos »
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When YouTube was first getting started, all you really needed was a webcam and an Internet connection to create videos and build an audience. Here's How Mark Zuckerberg Spent His 30th Birthday | ||
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Instead, he flew to New Jersey to watch his younger sister defend her Ph.D. in classics at Princeton, Lev Grossman reports in Time. This isn't the first time Zuckerberg has shunned extravagance. Despite his billions, he reportedly drives an Acura because "it's safe and not ostentatious," and his understated wardrobe of a plain gray t-shirt or hoodie has been well documented. He married his longtime girlfriend Priscilla Chan outside in his backyard, and the couple even enjoyed McDonald's on their Italian honeymoon. One thing Zuckerberg will spend money on, however, is philanthropy. He donated a significant amount of money to Newark, New Jersey’s public-school system and was named the most charitable philanthropist in 2013 after donating a half-billion dollars of Facebook stock to the Silicon Valley Community Foundation. He and his wife Priscilla also personally donated $25 million to the Centers for Disease Control Foundation in October to help fight Ebola. His largest and most ambitious charitable initiative is Internet.org, which aims to get every single human being online.
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Mark Zuckerberg may be worth more than $33 billion, but for his 30th birthday this May, he didn't even throw a party.
More Evidence That Microsoft's Siri Killer Is Coming To Windows 10 (MSFT) | ||
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For months, we've been hearing that Microsoft's virtual assistant Cortana would be making its way to the desktop. Now we have new evidence that makes Cortana's transition from mobile to desktop seem even more likely. Blog WinBeta claims to have used an early version of Cortana for Windows 10, and the blog says it can do everything the mobile version does. This includes tasks such as setting reminders, making Skype calls, checking the weather, and more. But Cortana's key feature is missing from the current build, WinBeta writes. The desktop version of Cortana, as it exists now, doesn't have any personality. Microsoft stressed Cortana's personality as being a big part of what makes it stand out from competitors like Siri and Google Now. WinBeta also emphasized that this isn't the final version of Cortana for Windows 10, so we're likely to see some design changes and a stronger personality if it's eventually unveiled to the public. Take a look at the video below to see for yourself. SEE ALSO: How Microsoft Created A Virtual Assistant That Could Blow Siri Away Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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The Wrist Is The Next Tech Battleground: How Apple Watch Will Kickstart The Smartwatch Market | ||
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| There's still a good deal of uncertainty about whether people will really adopt small screens built for their wrists. But at BI Intelligence we believe the smartwatch will lead the way for the entire wearables market, jumpstarted by the launch of the Apple Watch in 2015. With the help of Apple's new device, we expect the smartwatch category to cannibalize fitness tracker sales and become one of the most important new battlegrounds for hardware makers and app developers. In a recent report on the wearable computing market, we forecast out Apple Watch, smartwatch, and fitness tracker sales, along with the larger wearables device category. We also look at barriers to adoption, which remain substantial. Smartwatches still need the functionality to run without being tethered to a phone to really see widespread interest. Other barriers include price, limited functionality, and style. Finally, we analyze proprietary results from our BI Intelligence consumer survey on smartwatch purchase intent to get a sense of what people are looking for in their smartwatch and how much they're willing to pay. Access The Full Report And Data By Signing Up For A Trial Subscription >> Here are some key points from the report:
The report is full of charts and data that can be downloaded and put to use. In full, the report:
For full access to all BI Intelligence's charts, data, and analysis on the mobile and Internet of Things industry, sign up for a trial subscription.
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9 Books Steve Jobs Thought Everybody Should Read | ||
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Why did Apple think different? Because, Steve Jobs said while introducing the iPad, the Mac maker was never just a tech company. "The reason that Apple is able to create products like the iPad is because we've always tried to be at the intersection of technology and the liberal arts," he said. Jobs' lifelong interest in the humanities gave Apple a human touch. By combining tech and the liberal arts, Jobs said that Apple was able to "to make extremely advanced products from a technology point of view, but also have them be intuitive, easy-to-use, fun-to-use, so that they really fit the users." Jobs arrived at that perspective through a lifetime of reading, as reviewed in Walter Isaacson's biography and other places. We've put together a list of the books that most affected him. 'King Lear' by William Shakespeare Jobs really began his literary bent in the last two years of high school. "I started to listen to music a whole lot," he tells Isaacson, "and I started to read more outside of just science and technology — Shakespeare, Plato. I loved 'King Lear.'" The tragedy may have provided a cautionary tale to a young Jobs, since it's the story of an aged monarch going crazy trying to divide up his kingdom. "'King Lear' offers a vivid depiction of what can go wrong if you lose your grip on your empire, a story surely fascinating to any aspiring CEO," says Daniel Smith, author of "How to Think Like Steve Jobs." Buy it here >>'Moby Dick' by Herman Melville Another epic story colored Jobs' outlook in his adolescence: "Moby Dick," the deeply American novel by Herman Melville. Isaacson draws a connection between Captain Ahab, who's one of the most driven and willful characters in literature, and Jobs. Ahab, like Jobs, did lots of his learning from direct experience, rather than relying on institutions. "I prospectively ascribe all the honour and the glory to whaling," the captain writes early in the story, "for a whale-ship was my Yale College and my Harvard." Buy it here >>'The Collected Poems of Dylan Thomas' by Dylan Thomas But the intellectual flowering that Jobs had in late high school wasn't confined to hard-charging megalomaniacs — he also discovered a love for verse, particularly Welsh poet Dylan Thomas. "How To Think Like Steve Jobs" author Daniel Smith says that Thomas' poems "drew him in with its striking new forms and unerringly popular touch." "Do not go gentle" became a reported favorite: Do not go gentle into that good night, Though wise men at their end know dark is right, Buy it here >>See the rest of the story at Business Insider  | ||
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Mark Cuban: Here's The Best Advice I Never Got | ||
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Billionaire entrepreneur Mark Cuban recently attended our own Ignition 2014 event in New York. After his stage chat he sat down with Business Insider Video to talk about strategy, success, and more. Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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Using Apple Pay At McDonald's Is A Disaster | ||
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iPhone 6 users are hitting upon a problem when trying to pay for burgers in McDonald's: Staff don't know how to accept payment using Apple Pay, the new mobile payments app. Users of this Mac Rumors forum have been complaining that asking McDonald's staff whether they take Apple Pay causes delays in their order because workers simply don't know what it is. Here's a post from DKDonkeyKong that explains the problem: I just got my new Gold iPhone 6 Plus (128GB) yesterday. I went to McDonalds, excited to purchase lunch using my new device. The lady at the front gave me my total, and I said "I'm going to pay using my new iPhone". She immediately gave a very confused look and told me I could pay using cash or credit. I said that Apple Pay is an NFC-based feature and should work with any NFC terminal. She told me to wait just a moment while she spoke with her manager. At that point I was rather embarrassed and told her I'd just pay with my card. Other people have been having the same problem. One forum poster said "I have stopped even trying to tell anybody I want to use Apple Pay. They just get confused and it holds things up." iPhone 6 users have hit upon a way to get around this, though. They recommend asking to pay with a credit card, and then secretly using Apple Pay without telling the cashier. Here's some advice from a forum user on how to use Apple Pay in McDonald's: Do NOT involve the cashier. While they ring up, I generally have my phone near the terminal [with] home button pushed. This works over 50% of time. For those other times, when they ask cash or credit, simply say credit. People spend too much time talking to the cashiers. They're easily confused. Another forum user says "Don't confuse a McDonald's worker with the facts!! Just hold the phone up to the reader. Worked fine for me." Other advice given to people wanting to use Apple Pay at McDonald's includes "Keep your mouth closed" and "Don't bother even telling them." This could become a problem for Apple if major retailers don't train their staff in how to use Apple Pay. The whole point of the system is to make paying for things more simple. If Apple Pay is causing delays in lines at the checkout, or if retail employees don't know what it is, then people could stop using it. Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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17 People Whose Incredible Work Ethic Paid Off | ||
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It's nice to be talented, but the old saying is true: "Hard work beats talent when talent doesn't work hard." Despite their obvious gifts, successful people like Kobe Bryant, Tim Cook, and Sheryl Sandberg wouldn't be where they were today without having insane work ethics. This is an update of a post originally written by Max Nisen. Apple CEO Tim Cook routinely begins emailing employees at 4:30 in the morning. Steve Jobs left incredibly big shoes for Cook to fill. However, the man got the top job for a reason. He's always been a workaholic, and Fortune reports that he begins sending emails at 4:30 a.m. A profile in Gawker reveals that he's the first in the office and last to leave. He used to hold staff meetings on Sunday night in order to prepare for Monday. Mary Barra rose to the top of General Motors after 33 years at the company. Barra started at the very bottom of General Motors at age 18, when she enrolled in an engineering college sponsored by the company. There, she spent half the year inspecting parts at a Pontiac plant, according to Fortune. She worked her way up the ladder with smart decision-making and a willingness to give the company everything she had. The Financial Times reports colleagues recall her being the first person in the office every morning and responding to emails after 11 p.m. In 2013, her dedication was rewarded when she was named GM's first ever female CEO. Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban didn't take a vacation for seven years while starting his first business. At first glance, Cuban's amazing success looks like a stroke of luck. He sold his first company at the peak of its value and got into technology stocks at exactly the right time. Cuban writes on his blog that it took an incredible amount of work to benefit from his luck. When starting his first company, he routinely stayed up until 2 a.m. reading about new software, and went seven years without a vacation. See the rest of the story at Business Insider  | ||
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VIDEO PRESENTATION: Groceries Are A Massive Untapped Opportunity For E-Commerce | ||
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The grocery industry hasn't innovated much in the past 90 years, but that's finally starting to change. Tech companies are now aggressively pursuing the $600-billion-a-year food and beverage market and trying to bring more grocery sales online. Our look at the e-commerce grocery opportunity has been one of our most requested research reports this year. It's also one of the first pieces of research on this topic in the industry. We have prepared a short video presentation on some of the key points in our subscriber-only report. Click on the image below to watch our presentation on where the online groceries market is going. (Duration: 2:33) -- Produced by Hope King. Report by Senior Research Analyst Cooper Smith. BI Intelligence is a research and analysis service focused on e-commerce, mobile computing, digital media, and payments. Only subscribers can download the full forecast and in-depth report on the opportunities in e-commerce groceries. Please sign up for a trial membership here. Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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The Sad State Of American Inequality In 12 Charts | ||
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Income and wealth inequality continue to be a major political issue in the US and around the world. The World Economic Forum just surveyed its list of Global Agenda Council Members on the biggest issues facing the world, and rising inequality came in at number one. On a number of measures, inequality in the US has been rising for the last few decades. We put together a dozen charts and maps that show some of the core issues of inequality. Income inequality in the US has gone up over the last 40 years: The Gini index is a standard measure of inequality, ranging from 0 to 1. The index measures how far away the income distribution in a population is from a completely egalitarian distribution. An index of 0 corresponds to a completely equal distribution, in which everyone has the same income, and and index of 1 is a completely unequal distribution, in which one person gets all the income and everyone else gets nothing. The Gini index has steadily risen in the US since the late 1960s. Inequality varies geographically across the country: Gini indexes in metropolitan areas and areas around middle-sized towns range from a fairly egalitarian 0.36 in Juneau, AK to a highly unequal 0.55 in Ruston, LA. We recently made a list of the most unequal large metro areas based on US Census data. America's high Gini index is rare among developed countries: Among OECD countries, only Chile, Mexico, and Turkey have more inequality by this measure. See the rest of the story at Business Insider  | ||
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Artificial intelligence: Hawking's fears stir debate | ||
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Paris (AFP) - There was the psychotic HAL 9000 in "2001: A Space Odyssey," the humanoids which attacked their human masters in "I, Robot" and, of course, "The Terminator", where a robot is sent into the past to kill a woman whose son will end the tyranny of the machines. Never far from the surface, a dark, dystopian view of artificial intelligence (AI) has returned to the headlines, thanks to British physicist Stephen Hawking. "The primitive forms of artificial intelligence we already have, have proved very useful. But I think the development of full artificial intelligence could spell the end of the human race," Hawking told the BBC. "Once humans develop artificial intelligence it would take off on its own, and re-design itself at an ever increasing rate," he said. But experts interviewed by AFP were divided. Some agreed with Hawking, saying that the threat, even if it were distant, should be taken seriously. Others said his warning seemed overblown. "I'm pleased that a scientist from the 'hard sciences' has spoken out. I've been saying the same thing for years," said Daniela Cerqui, an anthropologist at Switzerland's Lausanne University. Gains in AI are creating machines that outstrip human performance, Cerqui argued. The trend eventually will delegate responsibility for human life to the machine, she predicted. "It may seem like science fiction, but it's only a matter of degrees when you see what is happening right now," said Cerqui. "We are heading down the road he talked about, one step at a time." Nick Bostrom, director of a programme on the impacts of future technology at the University of Oxford, said the threat of AI superiority was not immediate. Bostrom pointed to current and near-future applications of AI that were still clearly in human hands -- things such as military drones, driverless cars, robot factory workers and automated surveillance of the Internet. But, he said, "I think machine intelligence will eventually surpass biological intelligence -- and, yes, there will be significant existential risks associated with that transition." Other experts said "true" AI -- loosely defined as a machine that can pass itself off as a human being or think creatively -- was at best decades away, and cautioned against alarmism. Since the field was launched at a conference in 1956, "predictions that AI will be achieved in the next 15 to 25 years have littered the field," according to Oxford researcher Stuart Armstrong. "Unless we missed something really spectacular in the news recently, none of them have come to pass," Armstrong says in a book, "Smarter than Us: The Rise of Machine Intelligence." Jean-Gabriel Ganascia, an AI expert and moral philosopher at the Pierre and Marie Curie University in Paris, said Hawking's warning was "over the top." "Many things in AI unleash emotion and worry because it changes our way of life," he said. "Hawking said there would be autonomous technology which would develop separately from humans. He has no evidence to support that. There is no data to back this opinion." "It's a little apocalyptic," said Mathieu Lafourcade, an AI language specialist at the University of Montpellier, southern France. "Machines already do things better than us," he said, pointing to chess-playing software. "That doesn't mean they are more intelligent than us." Allan Tucker, a senior lecturer in computer science at Britain's Brunel University, took a look at the hurdles facing AI. - BigDog and WildCat - Recent years have seen dramatic gains in data-processing speed, spurring flexible software to enable a machine to learn from its mistakes, he said. Balance and reflexes, too, have made big advances. Tucker pointed to the US firm Boston Dynamics as being in the research vanguard. It has designed four-footed robots called BigDog (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W1czBcnX1Ww) and WildCat (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dhooVgC_0eY), with funding from the Pentagon's hi-tech research arm. "These things are incredible tools that are really adaptative to an environment, but there is still a human there, directing them," said Tucker. "To me, none of these are close to what true AI is." Tony Cohn, a professor of automated reasoning at Leeds University in northern England, said full AI is "still a long way off... not in my lifetime certainly, and I would say still many decades, given (the) current rate of progress." Despite big strides in recognition programmes and language cognition, robots perform poorly in open, messy environments where there are lots of noise, movement, objects and faces, said Cohn. Such situations require machines to have what humans possess naturally and in abundance -- "commonsense knowledge" to make sense of things. Tucker said that, ultimately, the biggest barrier facing the age of AI is that machines are... well, machines. "We've evolved over however many millennia to be what we are, and the motivation is survival," he said. "That motivation is hard-wired into us. It's key to AI, but it's very difficult to implement." Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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French president to discuss Ukraine crisis with Putin in Moscow | ||
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Almaty (Kazakhstan) (AFP) - French President Francois Hollande will make an unscheduled stop in Moscow later on Saturday to discuss the Ukraine crisis with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin, his office said. Hollande will stop in the Russian capital on the way back home from a visit to Kazakhstan, a day after vowing to work towards a "de-escalation" in the Ukraine crisis, it said in a statement. Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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Ireland upgraded to 'A' by S&P over economic growth | ||
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London (AFP) - Ratings agency Standard and Poor's raised Ireland's credit rating to "A", citing the country's improved economic growth forecast and its repayment of debt. The move to "A" from "A-" was the second time in six months that the ratings agency has upgraded Ireland, which was stripped of its maximum "AAA" rating amid the financial crisis in 2009 and a subsequent EU-IMF bailout. "The upgrade reflects our view of Ireland's solid economic growth prospects, which we expect to underpin further improvements in the government's budgetary position," Standard and Poor's said in a statement. Now the fastest growing in the eurozone, Ireland's economy is forecast to grow almost five percent this year, a significant rebound that contrasts with sluggish growth in much of the bloc. Standard and Poor's forecast that Ireland would grow an average of 3.7 percent between 2014 and 2016. It forecast unemployment would fall to nine percent in 2017, the lowest level since 2008, and said the labour market was flexible due to emigration and wage adjustments. The ratings agency noted that Ireland's banking sector had strengthened and that the state-run body NAMA that bought bad loans from banks had made good progress. Finance minister Michael Noonan welcomed the news, which came ahead of meetings with investors in China, saying the upgrades "reopened new markets to us across Asia". "The Standard and Poor's upgrade is further evidence that our economic recovery has firmly taken hold thanks to the policies pursued by this government and the commitment of the Irish people," Noonan said. Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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Drone strikes kill 9 'Qaeda' militants in Yemen | ||
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Sanaa (AFP) - Drone strikes killed nine suspected Al-Qaeda militants Saturday in southeast Yemen, where the US military launched a failed operation last month to rescue an American hostage, security and tribal sources said. "Several drone strikes have targeted Al-Qaeda positions in Nusab (in Shabwa province), killing nine members of the network," a security source told AFP. A tribal leader said soldiers of an unknown nationality were seen parachuting into the area and clashes ensued, suggesting it could be a new operation to try to free the US hostage. It was not immediately possible to verify that information. Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) on Thursday threatened the imminent execution of US journalist Luke Somers who was kidnapped more than a year ago in Sanaa. The United States has said that American and Yemeni forces recently tried unsuccessfully to rescue Somers. According to Yemen's defence ministry, Al-Qaeda moved hostages, including the US journalist, a Briton and a South African, days before last month's US-Yemeni raid in southeastern Hadramawt province. Yemen is a key US ally in the fight against Al-Qaeda, allowing Washington to conduct a longstanding drone war against the group on its territory. AQAP is considered by Washington as the most dangerous affiliate of Al-Qaeda. Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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Rains lash disaster-weary Philippines as typhoon nears | ||
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Tacloban (Philippines) (AFP) - Heavy rain and strong winds began to hit the eastern Philippines Saturday ahead of a giant storm threatening more devastation to areas yet to recover from a super typhoon that killed thousands. Typhoon Hagupit was moving slowly in the Pacific Ocean towards the disaster-plagued Southeast Asian nation and is expected to make landfall before dawn on Sunday, forecasters said. More than 600,000 people in coastal areas were in evacuation centres according to the government, and many others were expected to pour in throughout Saturday amid warnings of house-destroying winds, giant storm surges and landslides. Hagupit was forecast to hit remote fishing communities on the far eastern island of Samar first, then cut across mostly poor farming central regions, and possibly the densely populated capital of Manila. Many communities in the central Philippines are still battling to recover from Super Typhoon Haiyan, the most powerful storm ever recorded on land, which left more than 7,350 people dead or missing in November last year. In Tacloban, one of the cities worst-hit by Haiyan's monster winds and tsunami-like storm surges, thousands of people on Saturday crammed into schools, churches and other evacuation centres.
- Fear -
"We are afraid. People are panicking," Alma Gaut, 36, whose house was destroyed and mother died during Haiyan, told AFP as she huddled in the second floor of a university with more than 1,000 other people. "All we have is a tattered, plastic sheet to sleep on. My grandmother is already feeling the cold." Outside, the town appeared almost deserted as rain began to fall and trees bent with the wind in what residents feared was an ominous prelude to another bout of ferocious weather. In Catbalogan, the capital of neighbouring Samar island forecast to be the first place hit by the storm, authorities were preparing for water surges more than one storey high. More than 10,000 people had been ordered into safe buildings, according to mayor Stephany Uy-Tan. "We don't want people to panic but I ordered forced evacuations so they would be safe," the mayor told AFP by phone. "There are always some people who say the wind is not yet that strong, that there is still no rain... we just have to explain that there is a huge possibility of a storm surge." In the eastern region of Bicol alone, authorities said they were aiming for 2.5 million people -- half the local population -- to be in evacuation centres by Saturday night. Hagupit was on Saturday morning about 180 kilometres (110 miles) east of Samar island, according to local weather agency Pagasa. Its rains and winds could impact 50 million people, or half the nation's population, Social Welfare Secretary Corazon Soliman told AFP. The typhoon was generating sustained winds of 185 kilometres an hour and gusts of 220 kilometres an hour which, if maintained at landfall, would make it the strongest to hit the Philippines this year. The previous strongest storm this year was Rammasun, which killed more than 100 people when it cut across Manila and other parts of the main island of Luzon in July. The Philippines endures about 20 major storms a year which, along with regular earthquakes and volcano eruptions, make it one of the world's most disaster-plagued countries. The storms regularly claim many lives but they are becoming more violent and unpredictable because of climate change, according to the United Nations and many scientists. And in the previous two years, there were consecutive December storms that together claimed more than 3,000 lives. Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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Rampant Real Madrid eye new record territory | ||
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Madrid (AFP) - La Liga leaders Real Madrid will look to continue their sparkling form with a record-equalling 18th consecutive victory in all competitions as they host Celta Vigo on Saturday. The European champions surpassed their previous club record of 15 straight wins with victory over Malaga last weekend and, following a 5-0 Copa del Rey thrashing of Cornella in midweek, Los Blancos now have Barcelona's Spanish record stretch of 18 victories from the 2005/06 season in their sights. Madrid have now scored 64 goals on their winning streak, conceding only nine, but they know they will face a stern test against a Celta side that took all three points at the Camp Nou last month and secured a draw away to Atletico Madrid in September. James Rodriguez’s double against third-tier outfit Cornella meant that he is the only Madrid player to score in four competitions this season and his impressive start to life in the Spanish capital has not been lost on manager Carlo Ancelotti. "He is demonstrating his quality and showing great attitude during this period. We are delighted with him and he'll definitely improve," the Italian said. "I really like his attitude because he is humble and that is important. Having a humble player with his quality is a perfect ingredient for the team." Cristiano Ronaldo was given a rare night off on Tuesday, but the World Player of the Year will return looking to continue his lethal form in front of goal, having netted 20 goals in just 12 league appearances thus far. Jese Rodriguez, who made his comeback from a nine-month injury layoff in midweek, could also feature in La Liga for the first time this season, while Sami Khedira, who was forced off with concussion, should also be fit. - Catalan derby -
Barcelona host Espanyol in the Catalan derby on Sunday as they look to keep pace at the top of the table and build on their run of six successive victories. Andres Iniesta, who had not featured since limping off in the 3-1 Clasico reverse in October, made his comeback as the Blaugrana swept aside Huesca 4-0 on Wednesday evening in the Copa del Rey, scoring his first goal in eight months in the process. "It's never easy to come back after so long, but I felt fine and that's the most important thing. I was able to play without feeling any trouble and that's calmed me down a lot," said the Spain midfielder. Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez, Neymar, Jordi Alba and Sergio Busquets will all return having sat out the trip to Aragon, while Claudio Bravo is expected to start in goal. Champions Atletico Madrid can, temporarily at least, leapfrog Barcelona as they travel to struggling Elche on Saturday. Back-to-back home wins over Malaga and Deportivo have seen the champions remain in contention to retain their title, four points behind city rivals Real, but their indifferent away form this season will be put to the test at the Martinez Valero. After struggling to break down a resilient L’Hospitalet side in the first half in Cup action on Wednesday, the introduction of Antoine Griezmann at the break provided the spark that Diego Simeone's side needed as they went on to seal a comfortable 3-0 victory and almost certainly set up a Madrid derby in the last 16. Simeone, who was shortlisted for the World Coach of the Year award earlier this week, used the opportunity to give some of his fringe players a run out, and the performances of both Griezmann and Alessio Cerci will give the Argentine food for thought regarding his team selection. Meanwhile, former Manchester United manager David Moyes faces his first difficult away test as coach of Real Sociedad as they travel to Villarreal on Sunday. Fifth-placed Valencia are badly in need of a win after taking just one point from their last three games when they visit Granada and fourth-placed Sevilla travel to Rayo Vallecano.
Fixtures Saturday (all times GMT) Elche v Atletico Madrid (1500), Athletic Bilbao v Crodoba (1700), Real Madrid v Celta Vigo (1900), Deportivo la Coruna v Malaga (21:00)
Sunday Rayo Vallecano v Sevilla (1100), Barcelona v Espanyol (1600), Villarreal v Real Sociedad (1800), Granada v Valencia (2000)
Monday Eibar v Almeria (1600), Levante v Getafe (1800) Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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Third night of US protests against police killings | ||
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New York (AFP) - Thousands of demonstrators marched in major cities across the United States in a fresh wave of protests against a spate of killings of unarmed black men by white police officers. The signs of growing discontent took place as a New York prosecutor said that a grand jury would consider charges in one of the cases that has again brought to the fore the distrust felt by many African Americans towards the police. Akai Gurley, 28, a father of a young daughter, was shot dead when a police officer opened fire in a dimly lit staircase at a Brooklyn apartment building as he walked with his girlfriend late on November 20. Brooklyn District Attorney Ken Thompson said he would present all the evidence for a grand jury to decide whether charges should be brought. "It is important to get to the bottom of what happened," he said, giving no timetable for the jury to be appointed, nor for a decision to be reached. "I pledge to conduct a full and fair investigation and to give the grand jury all of the information necessary to do its job. That information is still being gathered," Thompson said. New York's police commissioner has said Gurley was a totally innocent victim and the family, who gathered for a private wake on Friday night ahead of the funeral on Saturday, has demanded justice. Protesters have hit the streets after grand juries declined to press charges against white officers responsible for the August 9 shooting death of unarmed 18-year-old Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri, and the July 17 chokehold death of black father-of-six Eric Garner in New York. Several hundred protesters staged further rallies in New York on a rainy and chilly Friday night, gathering across the city shouting "I can't breathe" as they mingled with commuters, tourists and holiday shoppers. Those were the final words gasped by Garner, a 43-year-old asthma sufferer, as police wrestled and held him to the ground in New York's Staten Island. Other demonstrators stayed "die-ins," by lying on the ground at Columbia University, Grand Central Station and after pouring into Macy's flagship store in Herald Square and the Apple store on Fifth Avenue. Other protests were reported elsewhere across the United States including in Miami, Chicago, Boston, New Orleans and Washington, DC. It was the first time the demonstrations demanding justice had taken to the streets in Miami, where protesters blocked traffic, while in the US capital some people staged a "die-in" on the roads. - 'He loves his baby girl' - The decision last week in the Ferguson case sparked looting and arson in the St Louis suburb, while outrage over the Garner case has been the rallying cry for the latest protests. A representative of Gurley's family, Kevin Powell, said the recent cases feel "like a series of modern-day lynchings." Gurley's girlfriend Melissa Butler told his wake Friday that she wanted justice. "How do I explain to my daughter that her dad is not coming back?" she told the memorial service at Brown Memorial Baptist Church in Brooklyn, where his funeral is to be held on Saturday at 11:00 am. "He hasn't done nothing wrong. He's a good man, good, he loves his family, he loves his baby girl," Gurley's mother Sylvia Palmer told reporters. - 'Negligence' - The New York Daily News reported that the officer who fired the fatal bullet texted his union representative as Gurley lay dying. After rookie cop Peter Liang discharged the bullet that struck Gurley, he and partner Shaun Landau did not respond to radio contact for more than six-and-a-half minutes, the newspaper said. "That's showing negligence," it quoted a law enforcement source as saying of the pair's decision to text their union rep before making a radio call for help. A neighbor instead phoned for the ambulance that rushed Gurley to the hospital, where he was declared dead on arrival. New York Police Commissioner Bill Bratton said on November 21 that Gurley was an innocent who had been killed by an "accidental discharge." Civil rights activist Al Sharpton's National Action Network is scheduled to hold another rally outside its national headquarters, The House of Justice, in Harlem, New York, on Saturday morning. Despite the protests, New York Mayor Bill de Blasio said that general complaints of police misconduct fell 26 percent from July to November and allegations of excessive force declined 29 percent. Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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Give me titles not records, says Chelsea boss Mourinho | ||
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London (AFP) - Jose Mourinho doesn't care about the prospect of setting an impressive new record with Chelsea because he is firmly focused on bringing the Premier League title back to Stamford Bridge. Mourinho's side maintained their six-point lead at the top of the table with a 3-0 win over Tottenham in midweek and visit Newcastle on Saturday looking to set a new club record by extending their unbeaten run in all competitions to 24 matches. But that significant milestone doesn't impress Blues boss Mourinho. He was quick to insist he prioritises the chase for Chelsea's first top-flight crown since 2010, while also suggesting his players are probably not even aware of the fact they could break new ground if they return from Newcastle unbeaten. "They don't know the record and if you don't tell me 20 times I wouldn't know. I don't care about records," Mourinho said. "The record I want is to win the Premier League three times at this club, that's all I want. "I'm not looking for records, I'm looking for points, victories and points, and if possible at the end of the season, titles. "The only thing that matters for me in the Premier League is that I've won the title twice." The Blues will welcome back top scorer Diego Costa at Newcastle after he sat out the Tottenham game through suspension. Newcastle have gone two games without victory, having previously won five matches in a row, but they have been beaten only once at home this season -- by champions Manchester City on the opening weekend. Following a poor run of results, second-placed City appear to have rediscovered the form that swept them to last season's title, having won their last four games in all competitions, scoring 12 goals in the process. The second game of that run was a rousing 3-2 win at home to Bayern Munich in the Champions League that gave Manuel Pellegrini's side a fighting chance of reaching the last 16 going into next week's showdown with Roma. Ahead of Saturday's home match with Everton, Stevan Jovetic said that the victory over Bayern could prove a turning point in City's campaign. "Honestly, in the Champions League we have not played well this season, but the game against Bayern helped us a lot," the Montenegro forward told the club website. "Now we are in a very good moment, but we must continue like this because we are playing every three days and that can change."
- 'Breath of fresh air' -
Third-place Southampton lost ground on the top two after going down 1-0 at Arsenal on Wednesday and now find Manchester United breathing down their necks ahead of the two sides' confrontation at St Mary's on Monday. United currently trail Chelsea by 11 points but although midfielder Marouane Fellaini is eager to bridge that gap, he acknowledges that Louis van Gaal's side must first safeguard their position in the top four. "I think we wait for a mistake (from the leading teams), but we have to look after us," he said after his side's 2-1 win at home to Stoke City. "After Boxing Day (December 26), we have a lot of games and we have to keep winning. Southampton as well, they are better in the table than us and we'll see on Monday as well." Arsenal's victory over Southampton kept them within two points of the top four ahead of their trip to Stoke on Saturday. Alexis Sanchez continued his fine start to life in England with an 89th-minute winner against Southampton and team-mate Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain believes the Chilean forward's will to win is becoming contagious. "He has brought that winning mentality to the side and I think it definitely rubs off on a lot of players," said the England midfielder. "He has been brilliant for us and a breath of fresh air, so hopefully he can stay in the form that he is in and we can help him out to keep producing goals like he has been." Liverpool, five points adrift of the top four after a 3-1 win at Leicester City, welcome Sunderland to Anfield on Saturday.
Fixtures Saturday (1500 GMT unless otherwise stated): Hull City v West Bromwich Albion, Liverpool v Sunderland, Manchester City v Everton (1730 GMT), Newcastle United v Chelsea (1245 GMT), Queens Park Rangers v Burnley, Stoke City v Arsenal, Tottenham Hotspur v Crystal Palace
Sunday: Aston Villa v Leicester City (1600 GMT), West Ham United v Swansea City (1330 GMT)
Monday (2000 GMT): Southampton v Manchester United Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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Sam Smith top new face in Grammy nominations | ||
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New York (AFP) - Newcomer Sam Smith joined Beyonce and Pharrell Williams to lead in nominations for the Grammy Awards, with the music industry's annual picks weighted toward R and B-influenced artists. Smith -- the British blue-eyed soul singer who emerged in force this year with "Stay With Me", a ballad about a one-night stand -- was tied with Beyonce and Williams for nominations in six categories at music's most-watched awards. "What is going on! 6 Grammy nominations. Dear Lord," Smith wrote on Instagram as he posted a picture of his face somewhere between tears and a grimace. Smith's debut album "In the Lonely Hour" was nominated for the most prestigious Album of the Year along with the prolific Williams' "Girl", which features the globally viral anthem "Happy". Beyonce, who won six Grammys in 2010 in one of the awards' biggest-ever hauls, was also tapped for Album of the Year with her latest, self-titled album, which includes her tune of marital bliss "Drunk in Love" sung with husband Jay Z. One Grammy surprise was Beck, whose collage-like and sometimes ironic songs have won him a passionate following for two decades but who has often been considered out of the mainstream. Beck was nominated in four categories including Album of the Year for his introspective "Morning Phase". British songwriter Ed Sheeran, who has collaborated with superstar pop acts such as One Direction, was also nominated for Album of the Year for his second studio album "X".
- Nods to new artists -
The Grammy winners will be announced at a gala ceremony in Los Angeles on February 8. The nominations, announced throughout the day on US television and Twitter, showed a shift in direction after French electronic duo Daft Punk won last year's top Grammys. All but one of the nods for Record of the Year went to a white artist heavily influenced by R and B or hip hop. Smith was the only male artist tapped for Record of the Year, which recognizes songs. Other nominees included fellow new artists Meghan Trainor for "All About That Bass" and Australian rapper Iggy Azalea for "Fancy", which features British singer Charli XCX. Sia, another Australian influenced by R and B, scored a nomination for "Chandelier". It was the biggest nomination in her more than two-decade career, although she previously was in contention two years ago in a rap category. Country-turned-pop superstar Taylor Swift got a nod for Record of the Year with "Shake it Off" from her chart-topping album "1989". The album as a whole, which last month enjoyed the biggest single-week sales for a US album in 12 years, came out too late for Grammy eligibility.
- One for U2 -
U2, the most nominated group in Grammy history, received a nod for Best Rock Album for "Songs of Innocence" but the Irish superstars were passed over for Album of the Year. The album was controversially released for free on iTunes in September but U2 rushed out a limited-edition vinyl in time to be Grammy eligible. Beck was also in contention in the rock category, along with veteran heartland outfit Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers, garage band The Black Keys and alternative rocker and producer Ryan Adams. Women took three of the five nominations for Country Album, despite the dominance of male-dominated "bro-country" on the radio. Brandy Clark was nominated for "12 Stories", which was released on a Dallas label after Nashville would not touch it, with established stars Miranda Lambert and Lee Ann Womack also in the running. Clark was separately nominated in the closely watched Best New Artist category, along with Azalea and Smith. Also in the category were Haim, the Fleetwood Mac-inspired California band featuring three sisters, and British rockers Bastille. Azalea was also nominated for Best Rap Album along with veteran Eminem, who recently threatened her in a song. Others in the category are the successful actor and poet Common, marijuana-loving soloist Wiz Khalifa and television star Childish Gambino, as well as Schoolboy Q, who released his major label debut. Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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This Woman Got The Perfect Revenge When She Was Asked Out By A Guy That Used To Bully Her | ||
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Louisa Manning grew up with less admirers than detractors, so when she got the opportunity a decade later to get revenge on one of the people that made fun of her - she took it. We learned via Buzzfeed about this woman. She's 22 years old now and goes to Oxford. Back in school when she was 12, Manning was bullied all the time about her weight, for being hairy, and being called a "manbeast." She says it drove her to a form of eating disorder. This is what she looks like now:
She was recently asked out on a date by one of the guys that used to bully her in school, and she had the perfect response to get her revenge. She decided to say yes, and arrange for the two of them to meet at a restaurant. And then she gave this note to the waiter to give to him when he arrived, according to Buzzfeed: Post by Louisa Manning .
"Hey… For what it’s worth, I was actually here to meet up looking for a chance to meet up looking to make friends, not because you are very good looking. I guess I had it coming though, and certainly don’t blame you for standing me up. I can’t change who I was 8 years ago, and I won’t insult your intelligence by pretending that it didn’t happen, but I hope you believe me when I say I’m a completely different person now. I can only apologise and wish you the very best. I guess I won’t hear from you again but I mean it when I say that I hope you have every success you deserve.” Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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An organic garden of plenty in Mali's arid soil | ||
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SATINEBOUGOU (Mali) (AFP) - In a strikingly green corner of Mali, one man is leading an agricultural revolution, using organic farming methods to get the most out of the land -- and pass his techniques on to others in west Africa. Oumar Diabate has established a reputation for raising chemical-free vegetables, fruit and medicinal plants at his small farm about 30 kilometres (19 miles) from the capital Bamako. In a vast country where two-thirds of the terrain is desert, Diabate, 47, lovingly tends his two hectares (five acres), nudging tomatoes, courgettes, lettuce and beetroot from the ochre soil. He and five permanent employees also grow fruit trees and plants required for traditional medicine, while dairy cows and sheep graze nearby and chickens fuss about in a separate enclosure. Diabate acquired the small farm in the village of Satinebougou in 2005 after years away from home doing his veterinary training in Moscow. A big man with a boxer's build, Diabate was inspired by French environmentalist and farmer Pierre Rabhi, the pioneer of techniques known as "agro-ecology". By mixing Rahbi's methods with lessons from his studies in Russia, Diabate was soon bucking the trend in a country where agriculture usually means traditional subsistence farming with low yields. - 'Even grass wouldn't grow' - "The land that I had bought here was very poor. Even grass wouldn't grow," Diabate recalls, but he had more than the soil to win over, because local peasants didn't believe in his project. "At the beginning it wasn't easy to show other farmers this, they thought I had something, a magic potion that I was using," he said. Diabate rejects using chemical fertilisers and pesticides on his farm -- a widespread practice in Mali -- instead he sticks to compost and manure, while rotating his crops to maintain the nutrients in the soil. He feeds weeds to his cows and in addition to their manure, a natural fertiliser, he cultivates a range of special plants that help ward off potentially damaging insects, worms and parasites, in place of insecticides. "Marigolds attract destructive insects to their flowers," Diabate explains. "It means that the tomatoes can grow without being bothered. At the same time the marigolds produce a nematicidal agent in the ground and so repel parasites that were attacking the roots of the tomato plant." - Huts for trainees - Tapping his veterinary background, Diabate has experimented with cross-breeding cows. He mixed local varieties with two European types, black-and-white Holsteins and red-and-white Montbeliards, to produce what he says is an animal more resistant to disease. "This cross also allowed us to boost milk production," he adds. "Instead of two to three litres (quarts) per cow, we have 10 to 15 litres per cow per day." Diabate now collects about 30 baskets of fruit and vegetables a week for direct sale to consumers, just as other organic farmer increasingly do in Europe and the United States. The aim is to support small farms and avoid losing money to middlemen. So far, Diabate has 29 regular clients in Bamako and the surrounding area, to whom he delivers once a week, on Saturdays or Tuesdays. The baskets, prepared by Diabate's wife Fatoumata, cost 5,000 FCFA (about 7.6 euros, $9.4). Diabate said he takes home 40 percent of this -- a critical return in a nation where the average monthly salary is 50,000 FCFA (76 euros, $94). But his other goal is to share his know-how in a land-locked nation that ranks among the world's 25 poorest and where 80 percent of the labour force works in agriculture -- mainly small-scale traditional or subsistence farms. Diabate has built several huts and a classroom and since 2007 has welcomed trainees from inside Mali and abroad, such as Cheikh Ndour from Senegal who came to learn his techniques last year. - Government reforms - The pioneering farmer has established a Sahelian Centre for Training and Research in Agro-Ecology (CSFRA), backed by a little financial support from Urgenci, a non-governmental organisation promoting community-supported agriculture around the world. Diabate has a place on Urgenci's committee and has joined forces with another Malian activist, Ousmane Camara, to promote agro-ecology and sustainable development. Diabate's methods have aroused some interest, but organic production is still marginal in Mali, where subsistence farming accounts for nearly 40 percent of GDP. Authorities have slowly introduced reforms over the past few decades and last year announced they want to make the country a regional agricultural force by 2017, in a document that resonated with some of Diabate's principles. The goal, an official statement said, is to create jobs and revenue "following the logic of sustainable development and respect for the environment". Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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Internet in Cuba only for the rich -- or resourceful | ||
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Havana (AFP) - With smartphones and tablet computers, they look much like young people anywhere, but Cubans have to go to extremes just to get an Internet connection and somehow get around the strict control of the Communist authorities. In the capital Havana, clusters of young Cubans can be spotted at weekends in groups near hotels, embassies and business centers in a desperate attempt to get online -- somehow. "Some people capture wireless signals after getting the codes from friends who work here, but I know there are others who manage to crack passwords with special software," one computer enthusiast said, speaking on condition of anonymity at the foot of an office block. Lurking down a small street abutting a hotel, another strategy is at work. Several youngsters tap away furiously on their devices -- they are online thanks to a shared connection courtesy of a classmate posted at hotel reception. Suffice it to say that in Cuba, wireless signals -- or failing that, any Internet connection -- are highly coveted. They are under strict control, reserved for companies, universities and institutions. A privileged few -- journalists, artists and doctors, in particular -- are entitled to a particular connection. And that's it. - Prohibitive prices - In 2013, only 3.4 percent of Cuban households were connected to the Internet, according to the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), which rates the connectivity of countries. Since June last year, the Cuban authorities have gone a small way to affording the island's 11.3 million population a rare chance to access the Internet, opening about 100 centers for the public to get online. But at $4.5 per hour, rates are prohibitively expensive in a country where the average monthly wage is around $20. Previously, only hotels could offer the Internet to the public, but again with a prohibitive rate of up to $10 an hour that only foreign visitors could afford. The state telecommunications service provider, ETECSA, does not offer mobile Internet to its customers, while the 3G network is only for foreign visitors using roaming and offers often patchy performance. ETECSA has now allowed subscribers to access their mail from their smartphones, but it only applies to the domain @nauta.cu. The company has also opened a service to send pictures from phones to any email address. They are minor concessions in a country where foreign-branded smartphones are increasingly visible. - 'Among most restrictive' - "Cuba remains one of the most restrictive countries in the world in terms of Internet freedom," Sanja Tatic Kelly, project director for Freedom on the Net, at the American NGO Freedom House, told AFP. "Rather than relying on the technically sophisticated filtering and blocking used by other repressive regimes, the Cuban government limits users’ access to information primarily via lack of technology and prohibitive costs," she said. The Cuban authorities do censor certain websites -- press and blogs that are against the Castro leadership, pornography and Skype -- but Tatic Kelly noted: "The total number of blocked websites is relatively small when compared to many other authoritarian states like China, Iran or Saudi Arabia." The more tech-savvy Cubans have found a way around that too, downloading software that can hide their IP addresses to avoid detection and mislead snooping eyes into thinking they are surfing the net in another country. For those who are less tech-smart, they can always rely on the "paquete" -- USB sticks packed with pirated films, TV shows, pop music and games and sold on the black market for a few US dollars. Cuba's rulers say they need to keep a tight rein on the Internet to protect the island from cyberattacks. Over 18 months, Havana has been the victim of cyberattacks from thousands of addresses registered in over 150 countries, according to deputy minister of communications Wilfredo Gonzalez. That brooks no argument with Tatic Kelly. "Cuba does not register as one of the leading countries experiencing cyberattacks," she said, citing data from online security experts Kaspersky Lab, which ranks Cuba 199th in terms of countries hit with counterattacks. At number one, the most targeted, is Russia, it says, with the United States third. Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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Steve Jobs Gives Posthumous Testimony In Apple Trial | ||
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New York (AFP) - Three years after the tech world mourned his passing, Apple mastermind Steve Jobs was back from the dead giving posthumous testimony in a video at a US antitrust trial. Jurors in an Oakland court have been submerged since the beginning of the week in a debate over whether consumers who bought Apple's iPod between 2006 and 2009 were effectively forced to purchase their music from the California titan's online iTunes store. Jobs' testimony from a few months before his death in October 2011 was played at the hearing Friday. In excerpts published by online news site "The Verge," he said that Apple was "very concerned" about retaliatory measures that could be taken by record companies if songs purchased in iTunes and downloaded to an iPod were then copied onto somebody else's computer. "We went to great pains to make sure that people couldn't hack into our digital rights management system because if they could, we would get nasty emails from the labels threatening us that they were going to yank the license," Jobs said. He argued that "lots of hackers" were trying to break into the system, and as a result, Apple had to be constantly "revving the iTunes and iPod software, closing any holes that might be in it, or any problems it might have." If these changes meant that competitors became locked out, then they were only "collateral damage," he said. Plaintiffs in the class-action suit argued that the repeat changes prevented other online music stores -- and potentially less expensive ones at that -- from adapting their own systems fast enough for their music to be used on the iPod. This, they said, meant iPod owners had to make purchases on iTunes. The plaintiffs are claiming $350 million in damages. US law allows the judge to triple that sum. The trial continues next week. Jobs died at the age of 56 after battling cancer for several years. His death came less than two months after ceding company leadership to Apple's current CEO Tim Cook.
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Kidnapped Swiss birdwatcher rescued in Philippines: military | ||
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Jolo (Philippines) (AFP) - A Swiss man kidnapped by Islamic militants in the southern Philippines nearly three years ago was rescued on Saturday during a gunbattle between soldiers and his abductors, the military said. Lorenzo Vinciguerra ran away from the Abu Sayyaf militants during the clash on the remote island of Jolo, and was picked up by the soldiers, a local commander and the region's military spokeswoman told AFP. Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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The Happiness Level Of Every Part Of The World In One Incredible Infographic | ||
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We often think about how happy we are as individuals in a given moment, but rarely look at the bigger picture. The website MoveHub.com is a resource for people looking to move abroad, and they recently put together a fantastic and eye-opening infographic that measures the happiness levels of every part of the world. The results are very interesting. The US and Russia rate pretty low on the happiness scale, while a glance at South America paints the exact opposite picture. It's based on the HPI or "Happy Planet Index," Which MoveHub says puts a focus on living long lives with a "high experience of well-being within the environmental limits of the planet." A look around this graphic will tell you a lot about how people in different parts of the world view their lives, take a look:
SEE ALSO: The Second Languages Of Every Part Of The World In One Incredible Infographic Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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Developing world may need annual $500 bn for climate by 2050: UN | ||
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Lima (AFP) - Developing countries may need up to $500 billion per year by 2050 to adapt to the ravages of climate change, dwarfing previous estimates, a UN report said. The figure was about 20 times today's public spending on climate adaptation, according to the United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP) that warned of a "significant funding gap after 2020." And the number could be further inflated if countries fail to meet the UN target of limiting global warming to two degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit) over pre-Industrial Revolution levels. "The impacts of climate change are already beginning to be factored into the budgets of national and local authorities," UNEP executive director Achim Steiner said in a statement. "The escalating cost implications on communities, cities, business, taxpayers and national budgets merit closer attention as they translate into real economic consequences," he added. In 2012-13, the amount of global public finance committed to adaptation was about $23-26 billion, of which 90 percent went to developing countries. Adaptation support is a key sticking point at UN negotiations under way in Lima to hammer out the broad outlines of a new world pact to curb global warming. Poor countries most vulnerable to climate-change-induced impacts -- extreme weather events, floods, droughts and sea-level rise -- are demanding that a rich nation commitment to adaptation and finance help be written into the pact. But many developed countries insist the deal, due to be signed in Paris in December 2015 to enter into force by 2020, should focus on mitigation -- meaning efforts to curb planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions. Steiner said the new report "underlines the importance of including comprehensive adaptation plans in the agreement."
- 'Significant underestimate' -
The UN's top climate science body, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), has projected adaptation costs in developing countries to reach $70-100 billion per year by 2050, based largely on World Bank figures from 2010. But the new UNEP report said this was likely a "significant underestimate", even if warming can be limited to two degrees Celsius this century -- which many scientists say is unlikely. Data gathered by research institutions, based on a wider and more detailed database, found that "at a minimum, the costs of adaptation are likely two to three times higher," it said. And on some calculations, based on national-level rather than global-level studies, "adaptation costs could climb as high as $150 billion by 2025/2030 and $250-500 billion per year by 2050" -- and double that if the global average temperature rise is allowed to approach 4 C. Senior climate change advisor Mohamed Adow of Christian Aid said some developing countries were already at their financial limit for climate adaptation. "It's a cruel irony that it is the rich countries whose carbon emissions helped create these climate change impacts that don't want adaption to be a central part of the Paris agreement," he said. Sandeep Chamling Rai, adaptation policy advisor to green group WWF, added that the report "opens up a window onto a nightmarish future, where the global economy is crippled and the most vulnerable countries are even further disadvantaged. "This is not a gap, it's an abyss. We can avoid falling into it, but we're running out of time." Gathering 195 states and the European Union bloc, the 12-day Lima meeting has as one of its tasks to draft guidelines for nations when they make emissions-cutting pledges next year -- commitments that are at the heart of the new pact. The climate negotiations have been bedeviled for years by rifts between rich and poor nations over who should shoulder the burden of emissions cuts, which require a politically and financially difficult shift from cheap and plentiful fossil fuel to cleaner energy sources. Finance remains a sore point, with developing nations insisting that rich economies must show in Lima how they intend to honor promises to muster up to $100 billion in climate finance per year from 2020. To date, nearly $10 billion in startup capital had been promised for the Green Climate Fund, the main vehicle for channeling the money. Norway on Friday said it will provide $258 million to the fund over the next four years. Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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Bono 'dressed as Hasidic Jew' during bike crash: Edge | ||
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New York (AFP) - How did U2 frontman Bono escape notice when he crashed his bicycle last month? If his bandmate is to be believed, it's because he was disguised as a Hasidic Jew. U2 guitarist The Edge was asked in a US radio interview why no pictures emerged when Bono -- one of the world's most recognizable singers -- suffered a serious accident in New York's Central Park. "When he's going cycling, he likes to dress up as a Hasidic Jew, so I think that probably helped," The Edge told KROQ in Los Angeles. The Edge sounded serious but the radio hosts laughed and did not follow up to ask if he was joking. Hasidic Jewish men, who are a common sight in New York, generally wear dark suits and brimmed hats and maintain facial hair. The Edge said that Bono was wearing a helmet. U2 on Wednesday announced a tour of North America and Europe starting in May. The Edge gave the interview to KROQ amid the tour announcement to reveal that U2 would not play the Los Angeles station's annual "Almost Acoustic Christmas" charity concert next week due to Bono's injuries. The Irish superstars played a surprise show on Monday in New York to support efforts to fight AIDS. Bono was absent, with Bruce Springsteen and Coldplay's Chris Martin filling in. The Edge said that Bono was "so upset" but had been told by doctors not to move for several months. Bono returned to Dublin after five hours of surgery in New York. The Edge said that Bono showed the band his X-rays and that his bones "looked like a miniature Eiffel Tower." Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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S&P 500 delivers seventh straight weekly gain | ||
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New York (AFP) - A surprisingly strong US jobs report for November powered US stocks to another record performance, with the S&P 500 registering its seventh straight weekly gain. Wall Street shares continued to take the good news as good for all -- more jobs, cheaper oil, stronger growth -- even as it raised the chance of earlier and sharper interest rate rises next year. And, on the 18th anniversary Friday of then-Federal Reserve chairman Alan Greenspan's ominous warning of "irrational exuberance" in markets, the Street chose to ignore questions of rising risk-taking. Instead, the week saw the S&P add 0.4 percent to a new closing record of 2,075.37, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average picked up 0.7 percent to a fresh mark of 17,958.79. That gain took place even as Thanksgiving weekend sales in stores and online were solid but not stunning; despite the weakening of oil sector shares by the fall in crude prices; and even though major economies in the rest of the world, particularly the eurozone and Japan, remained disturbingly weak. For many the US economy continued to justify buying in. Friday's gains came on the back of the best monthly jobs report in more than two years. The US economy churned out 321,000 net new jobs in November, 90,000 more than economists expected. The gains were strong through a broad range of industries. Coupled with the plunge in gasoline prices, it means US consumers are enjoying much better gains in their wallets. "The US market continues to be the best market compared to China, Japan and Europe," said Michael James of Wedbush Securities. "Overall, with the better numbers for both earnings and economic data, the momentum continues higher in the US market. I dont expect it to abate by the end of next year."
- 'Excessive risk-taking' -
But some analysts were worried about the recent runup. In its seven-week winning streak, the S&P 500 has added 10 percent. And even as oil prices continued their fall this week, share prices of oil industry firms recovered, as investors plunged back in, in the belief that they were oversold. On Tuesday the US Treasury's Office of Financial Research (OFR) warned that the cheap money the Fed and other major central banks have been pouring into the financial system could be artificially inflating assets and driving more risky behavior in the financial sector. "We see material evidence of excessive risk-taking during the extended period of low interest rates and low volatility," the OFR said in a report to Congress. "We are concerned that financial activity is migrating toward areas of the financial system where threats are more difficult to assess because information is not available, and that activity may be consequential." The OFR pointed to the momentary, still-unexplained flash crash in the US Treasury bond market on one day in October as a sign of what could happen in markets increasingly dominated by hyper-speed computerized trading decisions. "We believe there is a risk of a repeat occurrence, given the increased prevalence of algorithmic trading, a shift in risk preferences by broker-dealers, and the persistent incentives for risk-taking." The Treasury warned that no one is certain how the Fed's expected move next year to tighten monetary policy after six years of zero interest rates will affect the markets. For Mace Blicksilver of Marblehead Asset Management, the issue is just how much of the market's gains are driven by the Fed's cheap money policies. "The question is, when this stimulus is removed, will this deflate like a pancake? We don't really know how it's going to turn out," he said. It was 18 years ago on Friday when Greenspan made his most famous statement, in the form of a fraught rhetorical question. "How do we know when irrational exuberance has unduly escalated asset values?" The question came after the Dow had run up 70 percent in two years, and Greenspan's oracular musing sent a shudder through markets. But that lasted for all of about a week. The Dow then continued its upward march, adding 83 percent from when he spoke until the beginning of 2000, when the exuberance finally ran out. Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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Hackers Target Sony Again With Email To Staff Threatening Their Families (ADR) | ||
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Sony staffers, reeling from a devastating hacking scandal, have received threatening emails from self-alleged hackers called the "Guardians of Peace" or GOP, reports USA Today. Those emails allegedly threaten employees' families if they don't support GOP's goals. "We understand that some of our employees have received an email claiming to be from GOP," a Sony spokesperson told USA TODAY. "We are aware of the situation and are working with law enforcement." The GOP seems to take issue with Sony Pictures' corporate practices, including its production of "The Interview," a forthcoming comedy about the assassination of North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un. An alleged GOP representative told Salted Hash that GOP isn't a state actor: "We are an international organization including famous figures in the politics and society from several nations such as United States, United Kingdom and France. We are not under direction of any state. "Our aim is not at the film The Interview as Sony Pictures suggests. But it is widely reported as if our activity is related to The Interview. This shows how dangerous film The Interview is. The Interview is very dangerous enough to cause a massive hack attack. Sony Pictures produced the film harming the regional peace and security and violating human rights for money. "The news with The Interview fully acquaints us with the crimes of Sony Pictures. Like this, their activity is contrary to our philosophy. We struggle to fight against such greed of Sony Pictures." Sony has alleged that the hackers, who leaked celebrity and studio executive salaries, come from North Korea. North Korea has denied involvement in the attack, which also leaked a number of company's upcoming films. Here's the full (and slightly incoherent) email sent to Sony employees, via Variety:
SEE ALSO: These Are All The Sony Movies That Leaked Online Amid Massive Hack Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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