Wednesday, November 28th, 2018
Stephan: Here is some real data concerning how the developed societies of the world look at transgender people; it is quite revealing. Among other things, it shows that because of the christofacist bloc Americans are amongst the least tolerant people in the developed world.
As part of Ipsos’ ongoing commitment to bringing voice to people through data, Ipsos undertook a survey on the topic of transgender people on our monthly global survey vehicle Global Advisor.
The data was collected online between October 24th and November 7th, 2017 and included the following countries: Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Chile, China, Ecuador, France, Great Britain, Germany, Hungary, India, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, Peru, Poland, Russia, Serbia, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Turkey, and the United States of America.
For the purposes of this summary write-up, however, Ipsos has chosen to focus on findings from the 16 countries where internet penetration is sufficiently high to feel confident that the data is truly nationally representative (and it is weighted as such therein): Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Canada, France, Germany, Great Britain, Hungary, Italy, Japan, Poland, Serbia, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, and the United States, according to Ipsos.
Majority want their country to do more to protect and support transgender people
A strong majority of people around the world would like their country to do more to support and protect transgender people […]
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Wednesday, November 28th, 2018
DAVID EDWARDS, - Raw Story
Stephan: Twelve years. That's 2030. Sarah Sanders has made it clear that as long as the Republicans are in power nothing is going to happen about climate change remediation, and two years from now it will be too late.
Sarah Sanders
White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders on Tuesday threw cold water on a government climate change report, which she insisted was “not based on facts.”
The massive government report released Friday warned that climate change could kill thousands of Americans and cost hundreds of millions of dollars.
At Tuesday’s press briefing, Sanders was asked why President Donald Trump refused to believe the report that was issued by his own government and backed by 300 scientists.
“You have to look at the fact that this report is based on the most extreme model scenario, which contradicts long-established trends,” Sanders complained. “Modeling the climate is an extremely complicated science that is never exact. The biggest thing we can do is focused on having the cleanest air and water and the president is leading on that front.”
When pressed about the report, the press secretary insisted that it is not “data driven.”
“We think this is the most extreme version, and it’s not based on facts,” Sanders said. “It’s not data driven. We’d like to see something that is more […]
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Tuesday, November 27th, 2018
Kristen V Brown and Robert Langreth, - Bloomberg
Stephan: If this research is replicated, this is one of the most important stories in human history. Am I exaggerating? No, I am not. This is the latest and tipping point story concerning the creation of Homo Superior; a trend that may result in two species, sapiens, and superior of the genus Homo. And, given the present world ec0nomic structure where profit is the only social priority, there is likely to be a correlation between wealth and Homo superior. All this while climate change is happening.
The world you grew up in is vanishing before your eyes.
He Jiankui
Credit: Mark Schiefelbein/AP
When a Chinese researcher claimed to have created the world’s first gene-edited babies, he traversed a boundary many people in medicine had long feared would be crossed.
Thanks to the proliferation and fast-falling cost of new genetic technology, that one day scientists would alter the DNA of an unborn person was increasingly inevitable. He Jiankui, a U.S.-educated scientist based in Shenzhen, said that he had used the gene-editing tool known as Crispr to tailor the genes of twin girls born this month to make them resistant to HIV.
The propulsive pace of technological development has put genetic science on a crash course with seemingly intractable problems of medical ethics, the desirability of designer babies, overlapping regulatory regimes and the long-term implications of tinkering with fundamental building blocks of human life.
“The ability to use some of these new technologies is becoming more ubiquitous and it doesn’t take as much sophistication,’’ said Food and Drug Administration head Scott Gottlieb in an interview with Bloomberg. “You can be a Ph.D. and have […]
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Tuesday, November 27th, 2018
Liz Alderman, - The New York Times
Stephan: When I was in China last year I was struck by how few people paid for a transaction in cash. The overwhelming majority of Chinese paid with smartphones. This takes it to the next step; it is a trend that is spreading through the developed world. This is a good discussion about what that means.
More than 4,000 Swedes have implanted microchips in their hands, allowing them to pay for rail travel and food, or enter keyless offices, with a wave.
Credit: Loulou d’Aki/ New York Times
Few countries have been moving toward a cashless society as fast as Sweden. But cash is being squeezed out so quickly — with half the nation’s retailers predicting they will stop accepting bills before 2025 — that the government is recalculating the societal costs of a cash-free future.
The financial authorities, who once embraced the trend, are asking banks to keep peddling notes and coins until the government can figure out what going cash-free means for young and old consumers. The central bank, which predicts cash may fade from Sweden, is testing a digital currency — an e-krona — to keep firm control of the money supply. Lawmakers are exploring the fate of online payments and bank accounts if an electrical grid fails or servers […]
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Tuesday, November 27th, 2018
Bradley Brownell, - JALOPNIK
Stephan: As you read this story think of it in context with the GM announcement of multiple plant closures and the dismissal of 15,000 workers who were involved in the old carbon vehicle technologies.
In much the same way that pornography has influenced humanity’s choice of VHS over Betamax and later BluRay over HD DVD, it is possible that the shipping industry’s slow move to electric propulsion will be the impetus behind a larger shift of society at large.
Last week FedEx announced that it would add electric V8100 model Chinese-built delivery vans from LA-based startup Chanje. Ten percent of the vans would be outright purchases, while the remaining 900 vans will be leased through Chanje-partner Ryder System Inc.
The electric vans are capable of hauling up to 675 cubic feet and up to 6000 pounds of goods with battery electric range stated at 150 miles.
Chanje saysmost domestic delivery routes average about 65 miles in total, making it possible for their vans to run two days of routes without a charge.
The benefits to FedEx launching an EV fleet are certainly many, not least among them being an image thing. The company already employs a few hydrogen fuel cell delivery vehicles from Workhorse Group, […]
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