Thursday 12 November 2020

Trump administration says still searching for TikTok resolution

President Donald Trump's administration said Wednesday it was still working to resolve its security concerns over Chinese-owned app TikTok after the firm sought to delay a deadline to sell its US operations.

source https://techxplore.com/news/2020-11-trump-administration-tiktok-resolution.html

New PlayStation hits market ready for battle with latest Xbox

Sony's PlayStation 5 went on sale Thursday, just two days after rival Microsoft released its newest Xbox, with the next-generation consoles vying for holiday season dominance as the pandemic boosts gaming demand.

source https://techxplore.com/news/2020-11-playstation-ready-latest-xbox.html

Rare Russian pink diamond sells for $27 million

A rare pink diamond derived from the biggest raw stone of the colour ever found in Russia was sold for $26.6 million on Wednesday at Sotheby's in Geneva.

source https://phys.org/news/2020-11-rare-russian-pink-diamond-million.html

Emirates airline posts first loss in more than 30 years

Dubai-based Emirates airline on Thursday posted a $3.4 billion half-year loss, its first in more than three decades, saying it had been badly hit by the coronavirus lockdown that brought air transport to "a literal standstill".

source https://techxplore.com/news/2020-11-emirates-airline-loss-years.html

Online shopping surge could lead to holiday delivery delays

Retailers and carriers are preparing for an online holiday shopping surge that could tax shipping networks and lead to delivery delays.

source https://techxplore.com/news/2020-11-online-surge-holiday-delivery.html

Central Florida lands hub for Jetsons-like 'flying cars'

The nation's first regional hub for "flying cars" is being built in central Florida and once completed in five years, the vehicles will be able to take passengers from Orlando to Tampa in a half hour, officials said Wednesday.

source https://techxplore.com/news/2020-11-central-florida-hub-jetsons-like-cars.html

US nuclear lab partnering with utility to produce hydrogen

The U.S. Department of Energy has awarded just under $14 million for an attempt to build a hydrogen-energy production facility at a nuclear power plant in Minnesota with the help of a nuclear research lab in Idaho.

source https://techxplore.com/news/2020-11-nuclear-lab-partnering-hydrogen.html

How to maximize the potential of marketing agility

Researchers from University of South Carolina, Singapore Management University, George Mason University, National University of Singapore, and University of Illinois—Chicago published a new paper in the Journal of Marketing that combines the academic research and field interviews with managers to explicate the concept of marketing agility.

source https://phys.org/news/2020-11-maximize-potential-agility.html

Losing the American Dream

As many Americans struggle to pay their bills, keeping up with mortgage payments can be daunting with the risk of losing one's home. The challenges to retain a home are stratified along racial differences. Black homeowners are twice as likely to lose their homes and transition back to renting than white homeowners, according to a recent Dartmouth-led study published in Demography . African American owners exit their homes at a rate of 10 percent compared with whites' exit rate of five percent. These racial disparities in the loss of homeownership are due in part to Black homeowners having less access to wealth from extended family and higher rates of poverty across family networks.

source https://phys.org/news/2020-11-american.html

Virtual reality forests could help understanding of climate change

The effects of climate change are sometimes difficult to grasp, but now a virtual reality forest, created by geographers, can let people walk through a simulated forest of today and see what various futures may hold for the trees.

source https://phys.org/news/2020-11-virtual-reality-forests-climate.html

Learning pathways could guide children who miss best start to improved literacy by age 11

The early talk and communication that children experience when very young, though essential in preparing them for school, has no direct impact on their reading and writing skills by age 11, new research shows.

source https://phys.org/news/2020-11-pathways-children-literacy-age.html

Evolution favors new diseases of 'intermediate' severity

New epidemic diseases have an evolutionary advantage if they are of "intermediate" severity, research shows.

source https://phys.org/news/2020-11-evolution-favors-diseases-intermediate-severity.html