Why America has so few carpenters https://t.co/bjC3X69ObP
— Paul Czarapata (@pczarapata) May 22, 2022
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On 05/20/2022,
in business, cryptocurrencies, economics, legislatures / government / legal, United States,
by Daniel Christian
Gensler warns as crypto crashes: ‘The public is not protected’ — from protocol.com by Benjamin Pimentel
The SEC chair had sounded alarms about crypto’s risks, and now those risks are in plain sight.
Excerpt:
SEC Chair Gary Gensler warned Congress Wednesday that consumers and investors are vulnerable in an increasingly volatile crypto market now reeling from a sharp downturn.
Citing the recent collapse in the crypto market’s value, Gensler said, “This is a field that is now worth $1.2 trillion. Two weeks ago it was supposedly worth $2 trillion.”
“The public is not protected,” he testified at a House Appropriations Committee hearing on the proposed budget for the SEC and the FTC. “They don’t have the disclosures from these entrepreneurs.”
From DSC:
A topic for personal finance courses? Economics courses?
Hot Economy, Rising Inflation: The Fed Has Never Successfully Fixed a Problem Like This — from wsj.com on 4/18/22 by Jon Hilsenrath and Nick Timiraos; behind a paywall
Central bank says it is possible, but many factors are out of its control; ‘they are strikingly behind’
Excerpt:
The Federal Reserve is setting out to do something it has never accomplished before: reduce inflation a lot without significantly raising unemployment.
Nasdaq slides 2%, Dow falls more than 350 points in sharp reversal as rising rates weigh on stocks — from cnbc.com on 4/20/22 by Fred Imbert Tanaya Macheel Hannah Miao
Excerpt:
The 10-year started the year near 1.5% and has shot up as the Federal Reserve tightens monetary policy to get a hold of soaring prices in the U.S.
“Although we expect inflation to peak very soon, if it hasn’t already done so, continued supply chain disruptions and a slow increase in labor force participation due to retirements and continued concerns over Covid, could easily keep the inflation rate more than double the Fed’s 2% target,” wrote Joseph Kalish, chief global macro strategist at Ned Davis Research.
On 03/18/2022,
in 21st century, Artificial Intelligence/Agents/LLMs/and Related, biology, copyright/ownership/NFTs, cryptocurrencies, economics, emerging technologies, engineering, health, IT in HE, Metaverse, robotics, society, technology (general),
by Daniel Christian
2022 10 Breakthrough Technologies — from MIT Technology Review; with thanks to Mr. Paul Czarapata for posting this out on Twitter
About the list:
Our annual list of 10 Breakthrough Technologies highlights the technological advances that we think will have the biggest impact on the world in the years to come. Every year, our reporters and editors survey a wide range of topics, from medicine to energy to digital technologies, to select advances that will affect our lives in meaningful ways. Some have already started to change the way we live and work, while others are poised to do so soon. This is the 21st year we’ve published this list. We hope you enjoy this glimpse into the future.
Also relevant/see:
- Artificial intelligence is everywhere now. This report shows how we got here. — from popsci.com by Charlotte Hu
What’s AI commonly used for nowadays and how much funding does it get? All these questions and more are answered in the new Stanford index report.
On 03/11/2022,
in Apple, Augmented Reality (AR), business, digital learning, economics, education technology, educational games / serious games, engagement / engaging students, experimentation, Google, homeschooling/homeschoolers, innovation, instructional design, K-12 related, Learning Experience Design, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, learning preferences, multimedia, teachers, technologies for your home, XR - extended reality, youth,
by Daniel Christian
This Hilarious AR App Teaches Kids Financial Responsibility — from vrscout.com by Bobby Carlton
Excerpts:
Adventures with Zeee Bucks is a mobile AR experience that is designed to help youngsters sharpen their financial skills by earning and saving Zeee bucks, and even help them save real money.
…
You can download the app today for free on the iOS and Android stores.
On 02/17/2022,
in colleges, community colleges, cost of getting a degree, economics, higher education, society, United States, universities,
by Daniel Christian
From DSC:
Hmmm…another interesting item:
Ranking 4,500 Colleges by ROI (2022) — from cew.georgetown.edu
Excerpt:
Using new data from the College Scorecard, we ranked 4,500 colleges and universities by return on investment. The rankings follow the methodology of our 2019 report, A First Try at ROI: Ranking 4,500 Colleges.
The rankings include a new metric that measures the share of students at an institution whose earnings 10 years after enrollment are higher than those of workers with a high school diploma as their highest level of education. An average of 60 percent of college students across institutions earn more than a high school graduate after 10 years. However, at 1,233 postsecondary institutions (30 percent), more than half of their students 10 years after enrollment are earning less than a high school graduate. Our previous research indicates that these low earnings may relate to low graduation rates and disparities in earnings by gender and race and ethnicity.
On 02/14/2022,
in 21st century, budgets, business, Daniel S. Christian, economics, faith, global / globalization, parents/guardians, productivity / tips and tricks, society,
by Daniel Christian
Ecclesiastes 11:1-2 and 6 — Invest in Many Ventures; as written by King Solomon
11 Ship your grain across the sea;
after many days you may receive a return.
2 Invest in seven ventures, yes, in eight;
you do not know what disaster may come upon the land.
…
6 Sow your seed in the morning,
and at evening let your hands not be idle,
for you do not know which will succeed,
whether this or that,
or whether both will do equally well.
From DSC:
Perhaps Solomon should get more credit as one of the first wise investment advisors. If he lived today, he would likely support diversification and support the concepts behind using index funds!
The DOJ’s $3.6B Bitcoin Seizure Shows How Hard It Is to Launder Crypto — from wired.com by Andy Greenberg
A couple allegedly used a “laundry list” of technical measures to cover their tracks. They didn’t work.
Excerpt:
“What was amazing about this case is the laundry list of obfuscation techniques [Lichtenstein and Morgan allegedly] used,” says Ari Redbord, the head of legal and government affairs for TRM Labs, a cryptocurrency tracing and forensics firm. Redbord points to the couple’s alleged use of “chain-hopping”— transferring funds from one cryptocurrency to another to make them more difficult to follow—including exchanging bitcoins for “privacy coins” like monero and dash, both designed to foil blockchain analysis. Court documents say the couple also allegedly moved their money through the Alphabay dark web market—the biggest of its kind at the time—in an attempt to stymie detectives.
From DSC:
Easy to follow/understand, isn’t it!?! Not.
The 4th Largest Crypto Theft Shows DeFi Weakness as Hacker Nets USD 325M in a Wormhole — from cryptonews.com by Linas Kmieliauskas
On 01/17/2022,
in 21st century, colleges, community colleges, economics, legislatures / government / legal, platforms, policy, political science, United States,
by Daniel Christian
From DSC:
Should Economics classes be looking at the idea of a digital dollar?
The battle for control of the digital dollar — from protocol.com
Excerpt:
After months of delay, the Federal Reserve’s much-awaited report on a digital dollar could be out soon. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell told the Senate Banking Committee Tuesday that the white paper on a planned central bank digital currency (CBDC) is “ready to go,” possibly in weeks.
But don’t expect a detailed blueprint for an American CBDC. The white paper will be more of “an exercise in asking questions” about how the digital dollar should work, Powell said.
And there are plenty of questions. Some have already sparked a heated debate: How should consumers gain access to the digital dollar? And how much control should the Fed have?
Will a digital dollar lead to “digital authoritarianism”? That’s one of the biggest fears about a digital currency: a Big Brother future where the Fed has the power to track how people spend their money.
On 01/15/2022,
in art, business, cryptocurrencies, economics, law schools, legislatures / government / legal,
by Daniel Christian
Bored Ape Yacht Club NFT theft shows the ease of hacking crypto — from protocol.com by Tomio Geron
The blockchain puts power in the hands of individual crypto owners — which also makes them targets for criminals.
Excerpt:
The story of an art gallery owner who had $2.2 million worth of Bored Ape Yacht Club and other NFTs stolen is just the latest example of crypto theft, illustrating the vulnerability of buyers as a broader set of consumers venture into the field.
With NFTs, the issue has grown in importance as the market has transformed from a niche hobby to an active market filled with speculators and investors.
Todd Kramer of New York’s Ross+Kramer gallery fell victim to a phishing scam in late December, according to a now-deleted tweet. He stored his NFTs using an internet-connected hot wallet — a less secure method — and a thief made off with 15 digital tokens worth $2.2 million.
From DSC:
How’s the legal field doing here? Law enforcement? Governments? The banking systems?
On 12/21/2021,
in Blockchain, business, business side of he, career development, change, changing business models, collaboration, communications, copyright/ownership/NFTs, corporate / business world, creativity, cryptocurrencies, disruption, economics, future, game-changing environment, generational differences, ideas, innovation, interaction design, interactivity, internet, IT in HE, Metaverse, new business models, platforms, play, vendors, Virtual Reality (VR) / worlds / learning, vision/possibilities, Web3, workplace, XR - extended reality,
by Daniel Christian
Web 3.0 vs Metaverse: What’s the difference? — from homo-digitalis.net by Fabian Schmidt
Excerpt:
So what is Web 3.0?
On Twitter, a user asked if someone could explain the term in baby talk. I thought one answer was good:
-
- Web 1.0 = Read
- Web 2.0 = Read/Write
- Web 3.0 = Read/Write/Own
This is a sufficient simplification to gain an initial understanding. Yet a bit more information is still important.
Let’s get one thing straight right away. As with all things in the making, there is not yet a clear-cut definition of Web 3.0. Tim Berners-Lee, the inventor of the classic web, thinks of the semantic web as the next big step.
…
Since 2020/2021, there is another idea of Web3, and it is inspired by a new form of technology: Blockchains. At its core is a new wave of decentralization.
Besides decentralization, other key topics related to Web 3.0 include Decentralized Autonomous Organizations (DAO), Non-fungible-tokens (NFT), and Decentralized Finance (DeFi).
The metaverse is a digital world that is meant to feel as real as possible and can represent all concerns of human existence. From leisure to work.
Fabian Schmidt, Homo Digitalis, 2021
Bill Gates: Most Work Meetings Will Happen In The Metaverse In 3 Years — from vrscout.com by Kyle Melnick
Excerpt:
“Within the next two or three years, I predict most virtual meetings will move from 2D camera image grids—which I call the Hollywood Squares model, although I know that probably dates me—to the metaverse, a 3D space with digital avatars,” said Gates in the post. “Both Facebook and Microsoft recently unveiled their visions for this, which gave most people their first view of what it will look like”.
Adidas to enter the metaverse with first NFT products — from dezeen.com by Rima Sabina Aouf
Excerpt:
Adidas has announced its next collection will be a mix of digital and physical items, and will be sold as NFTs produced with collaborators such as Bored Ape Yacht Club.
Titled Into the Metaverse, the collection will comprise virtual wearables that buyers can use in online platforms, but also the physical clothing to match.
It is Adidas’ first collection of NFTs, or non-fungible tokens – essentially, digital collectibles with proven authenticity. NFTs act as a blockchain-based certificate of ownership, allowing pieces to be authenticated, bought and collected.
How Coinbase thinks about the Metaverse — from blog.coinbase.com by Brian Armstrong & Alex Reeve
Excerpt:
Primitive Metaverse platforms are selling virtual land for millions of dollars. Billions more are being invested in Metaverse startups. And Mark Zuckerberg recently renamed his entire company to reflect a focus on building the Metaverse.
…
Recently, our team put together an internal presentation about the Metaverse, who’s working on it, and how crypto will help make it real. I thought the presentation was well done, so I’m sharing most of the slides here.
…
Like Matt[hew Ball], we define the Metaverse as:
The future of the internet: A massively-scaled, persistent, interactive, and interoperable real-time platform comprised of interconnected virtual worlds where people can socialize, work, transact, play, and create.
…
The Metaverse is the distant evolution of Web3. In its most complete form, it will be a series of decentralized, interconnected virtual worlds with a fully functioning economy where people can do just about anything they can do in the physical world.
