Search Engine Land: How DuckDuckGo (and Microsoft) benefit from Google’s sprawling advertising business. “DuckDuckGo is a search engine that was founded in 2008 with a focus on protecting searchers’ privacy, notably showing all searchers the same search results and refraining from building profiles of its users. Its search volume has risen steadily over the years, […]
AP: Germany extends partial shutdown to curb virus spread. “German Chancellor Angela Merkel and the country’s 16 state governors on Wednesday agreed to extend a partial shutdown well into December in an effort to further reduce the rate of COVID-19 infections ahead of the Christmas period.”
Daily Herald: Algonquin’s virtual inspection program catching on. “Brian Martin spent his week inspecting house wrapping, windows and solar panels for the Village of Algonquin, all while sitting comfortably in his chair watching a computer monitor at the municipal center. In the new world created by the COVID-19 pandemic, Algonquin officials have taken the opportunity […]
Packaging Today: BPF Launches Online Database of Sustainable Design Guides and Tools . The BPF is the British Plastics Federation. “The new online resource includes numerous design guides for making plastic packaging more recyclable, guides for incorporating recycled content in products, general guides about sustainability, as well as interactive tools such as carbon calculators. The […]
Mashable: Facebook comments on Fauci and Zuckerberg’s vaccine talk suggest we’re totally screwed. “Mark Zuckerberg and Dr. Anthony Fauci talked all things coronavirus Monday afternoon, but if you tuned in to the Facebook livestream you’d be forgiven for missing the finer points of the discussion. That’s because the often deranged user comments, running alongside the […]
Washington Post: A comfy chair, a locked door, an old record. Covid Thanksgiving inspires new reasons for gratitude.. “In any given year, Stephanie Coleman can recite reasons she is thankful on Thanksgiving, a list that includes her three children, her husband, friends, extended family and the six chickens in her backyard. This year? She is […]
New York Times: Pope Francis: A Crisis Reveals What Is in Our Hearts. “Sometimes, when you think globally, you can be paralyzed: There are so many places of apparently ceaseless conflict; there’s so much suffering and need. I find it helps to focus on concrete situations: You see faces looking for life and love in […]
The Hill: Google ordered to disclose emails in Russia oligarch’s divorce. “A federal judge in San Jose, Calif., has ordered Google to hand over emails from the son of Russian oligarch Farkhad Akhmedov, a billionaire who has been embroiled in a four-year, $600 million divorce battle with his ex-wife.”
AP: Empty seats, delivered feasts as virus changes Thanksgiving. “Turkey and pies will still come out of ovens, football will still be on TV, families will still give thanks and have lively conversations about politics. But this holiday has been utterly altered after months filled with sorrows and hardships: Many feasts are weighed down by […]
Make Tech Easier: Chrome Music Lab: An Introduction to the Easiest Music Maker Around . “You don’t need anything other than a mobile device or a computer to make your own music using the Chrome Music Lab. It’s the easiest music maker around and is completely free. You don’t even have to create an account […]
Gothamist: On The Plus Side, SantaCon’s Canceled?. “From the Silver Lining file, here’s something else to be thankful for today: SantaCon, the annual debauched meathead magnet bar crawl that floods certain unfortunate neighborhoods with blathering bro-chads in Santa costumes every December, has been officially canceled this year. SantaCon’s organizers said the pandemic was to blame.”
Politico: Trump officials hold first ‘Operation Warp Speed’ briefing for Biden. “Trump administration health officials on Wednesday kicked off a series of planned meetings with the Biden transition team on ‘Operation Warp Speed,’ the administration’s effort to rush Covid-19 vaccines and treatments, according to two people familiar with the hastily scheduled session.”
Route Fifty: Firefighters Push for Inclusion in First Phase of Covid-19 Vaccines. “The majority of calls that firefighters and EMTs respond to are medical in nature, and many have been exposed to Covid while on duty, according to the International Association of Fire Fighters. The potential for firefighters’ exposure, coupled with the role that fire […]
Backstage: How Sarah Cooper Took Over TikTok (+ Took Down Trump Along the Way). “If you’ve spent any time online during these difficult eight months, you’re likely familiar with the writer-performer’s lip-syncs of President Donald Trump. They’re impressions with just a touch of pantomime, though she does not put on a wig or costume. Instead, […]
EurekAlert: Why spending a long time on your phone isn’t bad for mental health. “General smartphone usage is a poor predictor of anxiety, depression or stress say researchers, who advise caution when it comes to digital detoxes. The study published in Technology, Mind, and Behavior was led by Heather Shaw and Kristoffer Geyer from Lancaster […]