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A forecast wave of post-pandemic business failures should prompt an overhaul

A forecast wave of post-pandemic business failures should prompt an overhaul

"Scythe," by Neal Shusterman, is the first book in a popular young adult, dystopian sci-fi series that fans of "The Hunger Games" will love.

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• "Scythe" is a bestselling young adult science fiction novel.
• I don't read many sci-fi novels, but I loved the world-building and fast-paced plot in this one.
• I recommend it to anyone who likes "The Hunger Games."

To be honest, I don't read science fiction or fantasy novels often. No matter how well-written they are, I sometimes struggle to imagine the elaborate worlds built by the authors, enriched with advanced technology or complex magic.

But it took me only three days to completely devour "Scythe," a wildly popular dystopian novel.

"Scythe," a young adult sci-fi book by author Neal Shusterman, was published in 2016 and is the first in a completed trilogy followed by "Thunderhead" and "The Toll." It's also currently being adapted into a movie by Universal Pictures.

by Neal Shusterman (small)

Before I opened the book, all I knew was that it's about a world where humanity has conquered mortality and now the only way humans die is by the hands of a scythe - humans who are designated, trained, and spend their lives in charge of "gleaning" people for population control.

Reading "Scythe," the story follows two reluctant teenagers, Citra and Rowan, who are chosen to apprentice a scythe, even though neither of them wants the role. As they begin to understand the intricacies of scythedom, their journeys are complicated by a stipulation: Only one will become a scythe - and their first act will be to glean the other.

I'm not the only one who's obsessed with this book. "Scythe" has great reviews - 84% of its nearly 200,000 reviews on Goodreads are 4- and 5-stars - and I couldn't agree more. This novel is fast-paced, involves excellent world-building, and - you heard it here first! - has the potential to become the next "Hunger Games."

Here are the three things I loved the most about "Scythe":The fantastical world feels a lot like our own, making it easy for non-fantasy fans to follow along.

I generally have a problem with the elaborate world-building in most fantasy and science-fiction novels. Even with beloved high fantasy series like "Game of Thrones" or "The Lord of the Rings," it's too difficult for me to keep track of all the different magic, characters, family trees, and histories that are crucial to the plot, making them personally not very enjoyable for me to read.

But in "Scythe," the dystopia (or utopia, depending on how you see it) is built swiftly and easily: It's reminiscent of the world we currently live in, but a few hundred years into the future. 2042 was the year the world decided to combine all the information that's currently stored in the "cloud" into one massive artificial intelligence system known as the Thunderhead.

As the Thunderhead immediately knew the collective knowledge of humanity, it was able to solve world hunger, wealth inequality, and all the other problems in the world. (Sure, you could poke some holes in this, but it's a YA science fiction novel. I just rolled with the information I was given.)

A post shared by Kat’s Book Stacks (@kats.stacks)

In this world, there are public cars that drive themselves, people have "nanites" in their bodies that regulate pain and emotion, and there are machines that can reset your age to any time in adulthood. Because this futuristic world felt plausible and familiar, it helped me become obsessed with the premise as quickly as I did.

"Scythe" presents a series of ethical dilemmas that kept me invested in the story.

Most scythes take the responsibility of taking a life very seriously, acting with a reverence for the gleaned and their families. They glean people in a similar ratio to the present-day mortality rate, randomly choose from a group to eliminate bias, and ensure they're gleaning the population evenly across gender, race, and age.

Each scythe has their own specific method of choosing who to glean. Some strictly follow the statistics of mortality from before the age of immortality, while others choose based on who seems ready to be done with life. Others mirror mass tragedies from history, wiping out hundreds of people at a time, but only a few times per year.

The book poses many ethical dilemmas that I won't spoil, but the main one is this: How does one person choose when another one should die? I still find myself pondering this question, which is one of the main reasons I loved the book so much, and can't wait to read the next ones.

This book is incredibly fast-paced and full of plot twists, which made me order the sequel.

I absolutely couldn't put this book down. Every time the apprentices would seem to conquer a challenge, another one arose. Even in the short moments that seemed like lulls, there were huge overarching problems that needed to be resolved and kept me turning the pages.

My only critique is the book didn't end in a very gripping cliffhanger. I know which problems will be addressed in the next book (not spoiling anything, promise!) but I didn't feel the immediate urge to open the next one until I read the description of the sequel.

That being said, I've already ordered the sequel, "Thunderhead," and recommended "Scythe" to every single one of my sci-fi-loving friends.

If you're looking for a fascinating dystopian science fiction book with all the page-turning excitement of "The Hunger Games," read this book (and the whole "Arc of the Scythe" series).

by Neal Shusterman (button)Read the original article on Business Insider

"The Simpsons" has a scarily accurate ability to predict future events.

Fox

• A company plans to pay an analyst $6,800 for eight weeks to watch 706 episodes of "The Simpsons."
• "The Simpsons" has accurately predicted future events, such as the election of Donald Trump.
• The analyst would make note of important events in the show that could happen in the future.

Your binge-watching habits might finally pay off now that one company is hiring an analyst to watch all 706 episodes of the TV classic "The Simpsons."

"It's a well-known phenomenon that The Simpsons has predicted major life events, and in our industry we too like to predict what the future has in store for us," said Platin Casino, an online casino company. "The Simpsons Series Analyst will get paid to note down standout events from the show, to help us predict the probability of each one happening."

"The Simpsons" has developed a reputation for being able to accurately predict future events, including the election of Donald Trump, the voyage of billionaire Richard Branson into space, and the discovery of the Higgs boson equation.

The analyst is expected to receive $6,800 and a weekly box of doughnuts to work 35-hour weeks for eight weeks watching the show and "The Simpsons Movie."

Platin Casino did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.

"During each episode the professional will be asked to take notes on stand out storylines to feedback to us and our team of prediction experts. We will then compile the events into a list of future predictions with a probability of each one happening," the casino company said.

Similar to many jobs during the pandemic, this one is remote-friendly with flexible hours, but it requires a laptop or TV, strong writing skills, and fluency in English.

"And of course, a love for The Simpsons is desirable," the company said.

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Chair of one of the biggest container port operators cites soaring production and labour costs

Chair of one of the biggest container port operators cites soaring production and labour costs

The wealthy already bear far more of the burden in the U.S. than they do in other developed countries.

The pizza maker’s same-store sales decline is its first in the U.S. in more than a decade, as the chain reduces hours and hunts for drivers.

Facebook

• Facebook is working on tech that will monitor human life, the company said in a new blog post.
• The idea is to build AI that sees the world as humans do, from a first-person perspective.
• This AI could be used for what Facebook envisions as the future of smartglasses.

Facebook envisions a future where smartglasses "become as useful in everyday life as smartphones," the company said in a new blog post.

In order to achieve that future, such devices will require powerful AI software that can read and respond to the world around the headset's user. And the only way to train AI to see and hear the world like humans do is for it to experience the world like we do: from a first-person perspective.

"Next-generation AI will need to learn from videos that show the world from the center of action," the blog post said.

Facebook's solution to this problem is a new project, titled, "Ego4D," which will collate data from "13 universities and labs across nine countries, who collected more than 2,200 hours of first-person video in the wild, featuring over 700 participants going about their daily lives."

The data will be open to the research community, the blog post said, but the goal of the project is clear: To create the type of AI that can power a slew of Facebook devices currently in the works.

There's even a Facebook division, known as Reality Labs, that's focused on research and development for the future of VR and AR tech.

That division is headed by longtime Facebook exec Andrew "Boz" Bosworth, who shared images of himself in various prototypes this past week:

-Boz (@boztank) October 13, 2021

The company already makes a very popular virtual reality headset in the Oculus Quest 2, and it has plans to transition from VR to augment reality (AR) in the coming years.

Notably, Facebook currently produces a set of smartglasses in collaboration with Ray Ban, named Ray Ban Stories, and previously deployed a team of staffers to capture data in the world around them using pairs of prototype smartglasses.

Got a tip? Contact Insider senior correspondent Ben Gilbert via email (bgilbert@insider.com), or Twitter DM (@realbengilbert). We can keep sources anonymous. Use a non-work device to reach out. PR pitches by email only, please.

Read the original article on Business Insider

Clear rules would benefit the public, and my company doesn’t seek to be the industry’s gatekeeper.

You may need to try a few different fixes if your Hulu stream isn't working.

Shutterstock

• If Hulu is not working, there are several simple ways to troubleshoot any problems.
• If you confirm that the Hulu service is working by checking Downdetector, you can close and restart the app to see if that fixes the problem.
• You should also check to see if Hulu works on another device; if not, you might have an issue with your internet connection or Wi-Fi speed.
• Visit Insider's Tech Reference library for more stories.

Like any internet service, Hulu is susceptible to an array of possible problems, any of which can keep you from catching up with the latest episode of "What We Do In the Shadows." If Hulu is not working for you, here are the most common troubleshooting steps to get back up and running as quickly as possible.

What to do when Hulu is not working

It's often hard to know what is causing a glitch with Hulu (or any other streaming service) so you should try each of these potential fixes, starting with the simplest and easiest and then working your way through more complex or less likely solutions.

Check to see if Hulu is down

Hulu is generally reliable with a very high "uptime," but if you get an error or can't connect, the first thing you may want to do is see if the service is offline. If it is offline, you just need to wait a while and try again later. The easiest way to check is to go to Hulu's network status page at Downdetector. You can also just search for "Is Hulu down" in a Google search.

Downdetector should be your first stop if Hulu is unexpectedly not working.

Dave Johnson

Close the Hulu app and restart it

If you're trying to watch Hulu on a mobile device, the Hulu app might be misbehaving. To solve that potential issue, force the Hulu app to completely close, then launch the app again. If you need a refresher, here is how to close an app on Android and close an app on iOS. If you're trying to use Hulu on a smart TV or streaming player like Roku, you can close and restart the app there as well, though the steps will vary depending upon what device you own.

Swipe upward to close the Hulu app on most mobile devices.

Dave Johnson

If that doesn't fix the problem, then you might want to try restarting the device (here's how to restart your iPhone), especially if you have any suspicion that the phone or tablet itself is misbehaving.

Not working anywhere? Check your WiFi

If Hulu isn't working, the easiest way to see if the problem lies on the device you're using or elsewhere is to try watching it on another device. Hulu not working on your TV? Start the Hulu app on your phone. Or try watching it in a browser on your laptop. If Hulu isn't working on two different devices - but Downdetector doesn't report any issues - then your WiFi might be the culprit. Reboot your WiFi router and cable modem (turn them both off for about two minutes, then turn them back on) and make sure you have a strong WiFi signal on whatever device you are trying to watch Hulu

Clear your device's app cache

If you check Hulu on a second device and it's working elsewhere - just not on the device you really want to use even after starting the app - then you might have a problem with your cache.

If you are using an Android phone or tablet, you can easily clear the cache. The steps might vary slightly depending upon which version of Android you are running, but here's the general procedure:

1. Start the Settings app.

2. Tap Apps & Notifications.

3. Go to the list of apps (you might need to tap See all apps) and tap Hulu.

4. Tap Storage & cache.

5. Tap Clear cache.

Clearing the cache may resolve a problem with Hulu not working.

Dave Johnson

If you're using an iPhone, there's no way to clear the cache without uninstalling the app, so go ahead and do that - uninstall Hulu from your iPhone, and then reinstall it from the App Store and sign back into your Hulu account.

Dealing with intermittent audio or video problems

There are a few reasons Hulu's audio or video might be inconsistent, stuttering, lagging, or cutting in and out. Start by making sure that audio and video works properly in another app, outside of Hulu. For example, if it always plays fine on YouTube, the problem might be limited to Hulu.

For a more widespread problem, make sure that your internet connection is fast enough to accommodate streaming video. Use a service like Google's Internet Speed Test to see how fast your connection is. Your connection needs to be at least 3Mbps for standard definition video, but ideally you want 16Mbps or more. There are a handful of ways you can speed up your internet connection.

Assess your device's internet speed to see if that's the cause of your Hulu playback issues.

Dave Johnson

If your internet connection and WiFi speed don't appear to be to blame and you are having trouble with Hulu on your television, it might be your HDMI connection, especially if you're using a streaming media player. Replace the HDMI cable and try again.

12 Hulu tips and tricks to improve your streaming experience and make the most out of your subscriptionHow to watch live TV on Hulu - plans start at $65 a month and include more than 75 channelsHow to use a Google speed test to check how fast your internet speed is12 ways to get the most out of your Netflix subscription and viewing experience, including keyboard shortcuts and other hidden featuresRead the original article on Business Insider

Drew Angerer/Getty Images

• Facebook is appealing a request for internal records linked to a Myanmar genocide case, filings show.
• It's the latest development in a legal battle regarding Facebook's role in genocidal violence.
• The company said sharing users' private content would create "grave human rights concerns of its own."

Facebook on Wednesday challenged part of a judge's order that would require the tech giant to release internal documents and private user content connected to the genocide of 24,000 Rohingya people in Myanmar.

The company is appealing US Magistrate Zia Faruqi's September mandate that said Facebook must disclose records from the company's private investigation into its role in the systematic mass executions of Rohingya civilians by the Myanmar military.

Faruqi's order also asked Facebook to release content posted by accounts affiliated or suspected of being affiliated with Myanmar officials.

"Locking away the requested content would be throwing away the opportunity to understand how disinformation begat genocide of the Rohingya," Faruqi wrote in the ruling.

The tech giant argued that disclosing internet users' private content would violate federal law under the Stored Communications Act, adding that fulfilling such a request would create "grave human rights concerns of its own."

The appeal specified that Facebook would comply with requests to "produce relevant public information and non-content metadata."

In a statement to Insider, Rafael Frankel, Facebook's Director of South and Southeast Asia Policy, said: "We support international efforts to bring accountability for atrocity crimes committed against the Rohingya people. We've made voluntary, lawful disclosures to the UN's Investigative Mechanism for more than a year and we commit to disclosing information to The Gambia to complement that effort. We also support modernizing the SCA and reforms that allow a broader range of disclosures for significant investigations like this, while avoiding a precedent that risks the privacy and human rights of billions of people."

Facebook's filing is the latest development in an international legal battle alleging Myanmar officials of genocide against the Rohingya, a stateless Muslim minority.

Beginning in 2016, the military carried out "clearance operations" of the ethnic group that included the rape, torture, and mass executions of tens of thousands of men, women, and children, court documents say.

Digital hate campaigns against the Rohingya on Facebook led to "communal violence and mob justice," The Republic of the Gambia claims in the international court filings, as organized groups used "multiple fake accounts and news pages to spread hate speech, fake news, and misinformation for political gain."

Facebook itself admitted that it was "too slow to respond to the concerns raised" regarding the violence, and said it will cooperate with Faruqi's directive to provide public information on "hundreds of accounts, groups, and pages removed from its platform."

Facebook called the order "sweeping and unprecedented," and said it would leave "internet users' private content unprotected and thereby susceptible to disclosure - at a provider's whim - to private litigants, foreign governments, law enforcement, or anyone else."

Whistleblowers Frances Haugen and Sophie Zhang have raised concerns over Facebook's international security issues.

"Facebook's consistent understaffing of the counterespionage, information operations, and counterterrorism teams is a national security issue," Haugen said in a testimony to lawmakers earlier this month. "I have strong national security concerns about how Facebook operates today."

Zhang, who was fired from Facebook last year, posted a 7,800-word memo detailing how she believed the company allowed authoritarian regimes around the world to manipulate its platform.

Read the original article on Business Insider

The pharmacy chain plans to add doctors’ offices to hundreds of drugstores.

Convert to Islam arrested over assault that ‘appears to be act of terrorism’, says intelligence service

Morgan Stanley CEO James Gorman. Andrew Burton/Getty Images; Samantha Lee/Insider

Andrew Burton/Getty Images; Samantha Lee/Insider

• Morgan Stanley CEO James Gorman said crypto isn't in demand for the bank's clients.
• Even so, he admitted on the bank's earnings call that cryptocurrencies aren't just a fad.
• He said he's watching how regulators plan to handle the space.

Morgan Stanley CEO James Gorman says crypto isn't a big part of the bank's business but, he admits, it's more than just a passing trend.

Gorman made the comments on the company's third-quarter earnings call after an equity analyst asked how the bank planned to engage with clients regarding digital assets.

In response, the CEO said Morgan Stanley isn't directly trading cryptocurrencies for retail clients - unlike some of its competitors - but it gives them access to buy digital assets through funds.

"It's just not a huge part of the business demand from our clients, and that may evolve, and we'll evolve with it," he said.

Even so, he admitted: "I don't think crypto is a fad."

"I don't think it's going to go away. I don't know what the value of bitcoin should or shouldn't be, but these things aren't going away. And the blockchain technology supporting is obviously very real and powerful," he said after the company posted an earnings beat, thanks to a boom in investment banking and equity trading.

For the bank, cryptocurrencies are a working space, Gorman said, adding that, "We're watchful of it, we're respectful, and we'll wait and see how the regulators handle it."

Other prominent market players have also stayed away from cryptocurrencies amid regulatory uncertainty. JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon went so far as to call bitcoin "worthless" this week.

Regulators have been grappling with how to manage the space for months. The Fed recently said it has no plans to ban crypto, and the US Securities and Exchange Commission said it's in the process of coming up with a regulatory framework for the market. Last week the SEC approved the closest thing to a US bitcoin ETF so far.

Read the original article on Business Insider

Residents in the square of The Villages, Florida, retirement community in 2016.

Rhona Whise/AFP via Getty Images

• Nearly half of Americans in a New York Fed survey said they expected to retire before turning 62.
• Retiring earlier lets Americans use their "golden decade" for better financial planning.
• But the economy depends on older workers, and a move to retiring early could upend the labor market.
• See more stories on Insider's business page.

Americans plan to retire earlier than ever.

In a July survey of about 1,300 American household heads conducted by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, the average chance adults expect to work beyond 62 is 50.1%. That's down from 51.4% in March and marks the smallest share since the Fed's survey began in 2014.

Conversely, the average likelihood Americans retired before 62 closed in on 50%. The chance Americans work beyond 67 also fell in July to a record-low 32.4% from 32.9%.

This could be good news for workers but presents challenges for the American economy.

3 reasons Americans are retiring early

More than 1 million older workers have exited the workforce since COVID-19 struck the US in February 2020, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data. Factors driving the mass exodus - deemed the "Great Resignation" by the psychologist Anthony Klotz - vary.

For some, the risk of catching the coronavirus countered the desire to keep working. Roughly 1.5 million Americans cited COVID-19 as the main reason they stayed out of the labor force in August, according to the jobs report. That count held flat from July levels.

Others likely stayed unemployed because of a lack of attractive employment options. The biggest labor shortages are in the service industries that took the biggest hits during the pandemic. It's possible older workers balked and decided to retire early, Julia Pollak, a labor economist at the job site ZipRecruiter, told Insider's Juliana Kaplan in July.

Soaring stocks also made more people rich enough to retire. The number of 401(k) and individual retirement accounts holding at least $1 million soared to a record 754,000 in the second quarter of 2021, Fidelity said in an August report, up 75% from the year-ago level.

For all workers, the average 401(k) balance rose 24% to $129,300 from the year-ago period, Fidelity said. The average IRA balance climbed 21% to $134,900.

The latest Fed data suggests early exits are the new normal, not a pandemic-era oddity.

Unlocking the 'golden decade'

The wave of pandemic retirements stands to overhaul the US economy.

For one, it freed up younger baby boomers to better enjoy their 60s (the oldest boomers turned 75 this year). The decade already covers the most common retirement ages, but it also serves as the "golden decade" for tax planning, according to tax experts at Aspire Planning Associates, because it's old enough to retire and young enough to plan ahead to reduce tax costs.

Early retirements could also relieve some pressure on the labor market and force employers to shift their focus toward younger workers, as employers have grown increasingly reliant on older workers over the past two decades. While employment has been almost flat for workers younger than 55 since 2000, it's grown by nearly 20 million employees for Americans 55 and older, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Simply put, the US economy was increasingly reliant on workers less than a decade from the average retirement age.

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The aging of the workforce is another piece in the puzzle of an America shown by the 2020 census to be having fewer babies, with fewer workers around to power the economy. With Americans less likely to work into their 60s and instead take advantage of the golden decade, employers will have to look elsewhere for workers.

The search is already taking place. Job openings fell slightly to 10.4 million in August, a historically elevated level that reveals demand for workers is still intense. Yet hiring slowed sharply that month and was even weaker in September. Employers will just have to find ways to get younger workers to do the jobs of older ones - or robots will have to pick up the slack.

And of course, not all retirements are out of choice. A Boston College study that followed the New York Fed survey found that more than a third of Americans between 65 and 69 years old don't have the cash to cover just a year of minimal care.

Read the original article on Business Insider

Chinese leader Xi Jinping

Xinhua/Rao Aimin via Getty Images

• LinkedIn is ending its localized version in China, replacing it with a site without a social feed.
• It had blocked accounts of reporters and researchers sharing content considered offensive to the CCP.
• LinkedIn is the last big American social media site operating in China, the WSJ reports.

LinkedIn is shutting down its local version in China after coming under fire for censoring accounts in the country that shared content considered offensive to China's government.

The company, which is owned by Microsoft, said in a blog post on Thursday that it will sunset the localized version later this year.

"While we've found success in helping Chinese members find jobs and economic opportunity, we have not found that same level of success in the more social aspects of sharing and staying informed," the post reads. "We're also facing a significantly more challenging operating environment and greater compliance requirements in China."

LinkedIn says it will replace the localized site, which launched in 2014, with InJobs. This will strictly be a jobs application site; it won't have a social feed or the ability to share posts or articles.

"Our new strategy for China is to put our focus on helping China-based professionals find jobs in China and Chinese companies find quality candidates," the post continued.

LinkedIn is the last big American social media site running in China, the Wall Street Journal reports.

The platform made headlines earlier this year for censoring profiles of users who shared "prohibited content." In June, writer and photographer Jojje Olsson was told by LinkedIn that he had to remove mention of the Tiananmen Square massacre from his profile or his account would be hidden from view in China.

At the time, LinkedIn said, "It's clear to us that in order to create value for our members in China and around the world, we will need to implement the Chinese government's restrictions on content, when and to the extent required."

Last month, LinkedIn blocked accounts of journalists and researchers on its Chinese site whose profiles contained content considered offensive to the ruling Chinese Communist Party, as Insider's Katie Canales reported.

LinkedIn told those affected users, "While we strongly support freedom of expression, we recognized when we launched that we would need to adhere to the requirements of the Chinese government in order to operate in China."

Read the original article on Business Insider

Pressure mounts on chancellor to deliver funding for dilapidated facilities following the pandemic

Pressure mounts on chancellor to deliver funding for dilapidated facilities following the pandemic

Last major US social network to operate in the country cites ‘challenging operating environment’