Your response is fine..

But .. productivity and mental health suffers for many

I would say.... once a week is fine. And if others WANT to come in to the office 5 days a week. They can.

But why?

Workers coming into the office.... how does it affect borrowed money?

Banks dont care if the office space is occupied or not. You are not getting a lower interest rate by occupying to max capacity

>"Work in the office" is just the manager's way of saying they don't understand what you do and have no way to measure your output unless they can constantly look over at your desk and make sure you're not happy.

This is sad if true.... get happy off the misery of others

Thats really...

>. I went in this week and I was one of four people. And I was on teams calls all day.

Does this make sense?

This can't be real life...

>More companies are backtracking on earlier pledges to let employees work from home on a full or part-time basis. 

Across industries, major corporations including Disney, Twitter and Starbucks are requiring employees to spend more time at the office. 

While half of employers say flexible work arrangements have worked well for their companies, 33% who planned to adopt a permanent virtual or hybrid model have changed their minds from a year ago, according to a January 2023 report from Monster. 

Marc Benioff, CEO of Salesforce, is the latest leader to appear to reverse course after embracing remote work and criticizing return-to-office mandates. 

Salesforce was among the first tech companies to tell employees they didn’t have to come back to the office, declaring that “the 9-to-5 workday is dead” when it announced a permanent flexible working model in 2021.

Earlier this month, however, Benioff said that he “knows empirically” that new hires perform better “if they’re in the office, meeting people, being onboarded, being trained” on the “On With Kara Swisher” podcast. 

Benioff’s comments come amid new reports that Salesforce will require employees to up their in-office time. 

“Our hybrid approach empowers leaders to make decisions for their teams about how and where they work,” a Salesforce spokesperson said in a statement.

As recession fears loom and layoffs mount, the power pendulum is swinging back towards bosses — and more companies could seize on the moment to get their employees back to the office. 

>‘The bosses are back in charge’

Anxious about high inflation and mass job cuts, workers’ confidence is wavering — even though the labor market remains incredibly tight, with almost 1.9 unfilled positions for every jobseeker.

Meanwhile, managers who felt they had less leverage during the prolonged hiring shortage now feel they have more power in negotiations with employees, especially when it comes to office attendance, says Kathy Kacher, president of Career/Life Alliance Services. Kacher has been advising companies on their return-to-office plans. 

“When executives were scrambling to retain workers, they were afraid to ask workers to come back to the office and lose even more talent, because many workers have made their distaste for the office very clear,” she explains.

Kacher continues: “Now, faced with this shaky economy, I think organizations are going, ‘Okay, good. The bosses are back in charge. Now we can say what we really want.’” 

For some companies, remote work accommodations offered at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic were emergency measures that executives don’t believe are sustainable for the long term, says Susan Vroman, a lecturer in management at Bentley University. 

Now that the pandemic is entering its endemic phase, more managers are comfortable asking people to resume their pre-pandemic commutes.

“If executives like having people in the office, it feels like the safest time in three years to communicate that,” Vroman adds. “And if leaders at big companies are adjusting their return to office policies, others will see that and think, ‘I can do the same.’”

Yeah... its almost futuristic imo

And could be a model to copy... in the event outdoor living is not feasable?

Example... need to conserve water/utilize rain water in a very efficient way

Utilize rainfall to assist with electricity/create a man made indoor river.... for drinking water.

Build with window solar panels to assist with electricity.

Indoor rainforest to provide oxygen/oxygen cycle

Yup

What is wrong with continuing to utilize Apple/Google pay via phone tap?

Their ice chai latte with soy milk is very good 👍

>Bakery is first restaurant chain to use Amazon One biometric technology, which faces scrutiny from lawmakers and activists

>The US bakery and cafe chain Panera will soon allow customers to pay with the swipe of a palm, marking the first restaurant chain to implement the new technology and raising alarm among privacy advocates.

The company announced last week it would roll out biometric readers in coming months that will allow customers to access credit card and loyalty account information by scanning their palms. Called Amazon One, the system was developed by Amazon and is in use at some airports, stadiums and Whole Foods grocery stores.

Panera, which has more than 2,000 locations across the country, is the first nationwide restaurant chain to use the tool. Through the new program, visitors will scan their palms to be greeted by name and receive customized order recommendations based on past preferences. They will also be able to pay with the palm-scanning tech.

Amazon One’s expansion into non-Amazon facilities has faced widespread scrutiny. In 2021, Denver Arts & Venues dropped plans to use palm-scanning technology for ticketless entry at concerts in Red Rocks Amphitheater in Denver after opposition from the digital rights group Fight for the Future.

“The marginal-at-best convenience of scanning a hand instead of a ticket is no excuse for implementing technology that will exacerbate violent systems and cause immeasurable harm,” the group said.

Panera did not specify where the technology would be available but said it had already been deployed at a number of bakery-cafes in St Louis, Missouri, where the company is based. Panera’s loyalty program includes about 52 million members.

Amazon launched its palm-reading technology at Amazon Go locations in late 2020, and is now facing a lawsuit relating to privacy violations after a shopper in New York City claimed customers were not properly notified such data would be collected.

Privacy advocates say this data is at high risk of being hacked and stolen, and, unlike passwords, cannot be changed after it is compromised. Lawmakers have raised these concerns with Amazon One in the past. In 2021, Senators Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota, and Jon Ossoff of Georgia demanded additional information about the program.

“Amazon’s expansion of biometric data collection through Amazon One raises serious questions about Amazon’s plans for this data and its respect for user privacy, including about how Amazon may use the data for advertising and tracking purposes,” the senators wrote at the time.

Amazon and Panera did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

>Singapore’s Changi has regained its title as the world’s best airport, after losing its long-held crown to Qatar for two years running during the height of pandemic travel restrictions.

The Asian hub edged Doha’s Hamad International Airport into second place, with Tokyo’s Haneda Airport bagging third, in the Skytrax World Airport Awards 2023. The U.S. was conspicuous by its absence in the top 10.

“Changi Airport is honored to be named World’s Best Airport for the twelfth time,” said Lee Seow Hiang, Chief Executive Officer for Changi Airport Group. “This recognition is great encouragement to our airport community, who stood firmly together to battle the challenges of Covid-19 over the past two years.”

The Skytrax World Airport Awards are determined by customer satisfaction survey.

These are the World’s Best Airports of 2023, along with their 2022 rankings:

Singapore Changi (3)

Doha Hamad (1)

Tokyo Haneda (2)

Seoul Incheon (5)

Paris Charles de Galle (6)

Istanbul (8)

Munich (7)

Zurich (9)

Tokyo Narita (4)

Madrid Barajas (16)

Vienna (19)

Helsinki-Vantaa (11)

Rome Fiumicino (24)

Copenhagen (17)

Kansai (10)

Centrair Nagoya (12)

Dubai (14)

Seattle-Tacoma (27)

Melbourne (26)

Vancouver (28)

>Shamsuzzaman Shams, a correspondent for Prothom Alo, detained under the controversial Digital Security Act.

Dhaka, Bangladesh – Bangladeshi police have arrested a journalist of a leading daily under a controversial media law following the publishing of a story that criticised rising food prices in the country.

Shamsuzzaman Shams, a correspondent for Prothom Alo, was detained in the early hours of Wednesday at his home in the industrial town of Savar near the capital, Dhaka.

Bangladesh’s Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan later told reporters in his office that Shams was arrested under the Digital Security Act (DSA) as his report was “false, fabricated and ill-motivated”. The newspaper has denied the allegations.

Denounced by critics as “flawed” and “draconian”, the DSA allows for jail sentences of up to 14 years.

According to the Center for Governance Studies, a total of 138 cases were filed against journalists under the DSA between January 2019 and August 2022, in which a total of 280 people were accused and 84 were arrested.

The latest data in February by the state-run Trading Corporation of Bangladesh, the prices of almost all essential items have increased by between 1 percent and 151 percent year-on-year on average in the country. The price of meat price has risen by an average of 39 percent, while rice was up by 30 percent.

According to research published on Wednesday by the South Asian Network of Economic Modeling, a Bangladeshi think tank, some 96 percent and 89 percent of poor people in the country have reduced their meat and fish consumption respectively in the last six months due to high inflation and rising food prices.

While Gates acknowledges that AI has the potential to do great good, depending on government intervention, he is equally concerned by the potential harms.

In his blog post, Gates drew attention to an interaction he had with AI in September. He wrote that, to his astonishment, the AI received the highest possible score on an AP Bio exam.

The AI was asked, “what do you say to a father with a sick child?” It then provided an answer which, Gates claims, was better than one anyone in the room could have provided. The billionaire did not include the answer in his blog post.

This interaction, Gates said, inspired a deep reflection on the way that AI will impact industry and the Gates Foundation for the next 10 years.

He explained that “the amount of data in biology is very large, and it’s hard for humans to keep track of all the ways that complex biological systems work. There is already software that can look at this data, infer what the pathways are, search for targets on pathogens, and design drugs accordingly.”

He predicted that AI will eventually be able to predict side effects and the correct dosages for individual patients.

In the field of agriculture, Gates insisted that “AIs can help develop better seeds based on local conditions, advise farmers on the best seeds to plant based on the soil and weather in their area, and help develop drugs and vaccines for livestock.”

>The negative potential for AI

Despite all the potential good that AI can do, Gates warned that it can have negative effects on society.

“Governments and philanthropy will need to play a major role in ensuring that it reduces inequity and doesn’t contribute to it. This is the priority for my own work related to AI," he wrote.

Gates acknowledged that AI will likely be “so disruptive [that it] is bound to make people uneasy” because it “raises hard questions about the workforce, the legal system, privacy, bias, and more.”

AI is also not a flawless system, he explained, because “AIs also make factual mistakes and experience hallucinations.”

Gates emphasized that there is a “threat posed by humans armed with AI” and the potential that AI “decide that humans are a threat, conclude that its interests are different from ours, or simply stop caring about us?”

>At first glance it looks like a video game, but this device allows hacking, stealing and tampering with information, like a Swiss army knife for hackers

Law enforcement agencies are concerned about the Flipper, which is supposed to be used for convenience and research purposes, and to store personal data. 

Yet this device with hacking capabilities is like a Swiss army knife for hackers and has developed an international fan community that shares information and develops additional capabilities for the device.

Many Israelis who buy the Flipper are information security researchers and tech experts who want to examine the device and understand its capabilities, but the product often ends up being used illegally by people who want to harm and terrorize others. In some cases, these nefarious hackers are actually breaking the law.

What cab the Flipper do?

The Flipper can be used to break into cars and hotels, as well as to steal information from credit cards, the rav-kav card which is used for public transport, and similar cards that contain private information. 

It can jam radio frequencies; take remote control of electronic products including turning off, starting or disrupting them; duplicate employee cards and subscription cards of various kinds (for example to a gym); activate parking gates by remote and more.

Cyber expert Osher Asor, director of the cyber department at Auren Israel and a cyber consultant to the Defense Ministry, promotes ethical hacking, i.e. using certain cyber capabilities and tech for the benefit of the public. 

In this context, he warns various private and public entities against cyber threats. He recently warned the authorities about the danger posed by the Flipper if it gets into the wrong hands.

Asor stated that the Flipper is an excellent device for people with good intentions. Yet, the disruptive uses of the device are diverse and destructive. Asor thinks that we only know the tip of the iceberg about these capabilities. As an ethical hacker it's important for him to clarify that the use of hacking equipment should be controlled and supervised.

He is rightfully free now

This is justice and uplifting imo

It is also a sad story... but for his sake...hopefully he can move on/find happiness. They need to compensate him properly

+1 he needs the correct compensation for what happened to him. An amount that will help him to never work again

He needs a year at a tropical resort somewhere. Just crazy what happened.

>Last week a St. Louis judge overturned Johnson’s murder conviction and ordered him freed. Johnson closed his eyes and shook his head, overcome with emotion. Shouts of joy rang out from the packed courtroom, and several people — relatives, civil rights activists and others — stood to cheer. Johnson’s lawyers hugged one another and him.

As he languished in a Missouri prison for nearly three decades, Lamar Johnson never stopped fighting to prove his innocence, even when it meant doing much of the legal work himself.

“I can’t say I knew it would happen, but I would never give up fighting for what I knew to be the right thing, that freedom was wrongfully taken from me,” Johnson said.

Thanks to a team of lawyers, a Missouri law that changed largely because of his case, and his own dogged determination, he can start to put his life back together. “It’s persistence,” the 49-year-old said Friday in an interview with the Associated Press.

“You have to distinguish yourself. I think the best way to get [the court’s] attention, or anyone’s attention, is to do much of the work yourself,” Johnson said. “That means making discovery requests from law enforcement agencies and the courts, and that’s what I did. I wrote everybody.”

“It felt like a weight had been lifted off me,” Johnson said. “I think that came out in how emotional I got afterward. I was finally heard.”

>According to South Carolina's WYFF4, Jennifer, a Travelers Rest resident, was sitting on her porch on a recent rainy evening and spotted a limping dog on the road near her home.

"My first thought was I need to take him to the emergency vet and get him checked for a microchip," Jennifer told the station.

Jennifer followed through on her intuition and brought the canine to an animal hospital. As she suspected, the pup had a microchip — what surprised Jennifer, and the vet, was that the owner linked to the dog lived 1,700 miles away in Farmington, New Mexico.

"When Jen texted me, I was like, wait, what?" Springer told WYFF4. "This dog never left my side, so I thought he had like walked off to die because he was already old."

Carolina Loving Hound Rescue (CLHR) worked with Jennifer and Springer to reunite Springer with Nugget, covering the owner's flight to South Caroline to pick up the pup.

It is unclear how Nugget, who is now 16 years old, ended up so far from home, but the CLHR believes that Nugget could've been picked up by someone on a road trip who decided to take in the pet, not realizing the animal had a microchip and belonged to someone else.

Springer is grateful to everyone who made her reunion with Nugget possible and that she chose to have her pet microchipped.

>Turning gas into plasma creates an intense electrical current for powering potent hypersonic weapons.

>Chinese researchers built a hypersonic generator that could power military lasers, rail guns, and microwave weapons.

>The relative compact nature of the hypersonic generator opens the scope of potential uses.

Chinese scientists say one formidable explosion inside a shock tunnel can turn hot gas into the most powerful hypersonic generator a military has ever seen—strong enough to charge military lasers, rails guns, microwave weapons, and more.

As reported by the South China Morning Post, a new peer-reviewed paper in the Chinese Journal of Theoretical and Applied Mechanics explains how the hypersonic generator turns one detonation inside a shock tunnel into enough electrical current to power hypersonic weapons of the future.

The Chinese scientists were able to use a controlled detonation to turn hot gas into a plasma filled with racing ions, which converted to current. With shock waves accelerating the compressed argon gas to 14 times the speed of sound, the charged ion-filled plasma then passed through magnetohydrodynamics generators to produce electric current up to 212 kilowatts while using.26 gallons of gas. That’s enough power for a burst of energy unlike anything available now in a compact system.

“It has a large capacity and high efficiency," the scientists write, via the SCMP. “There is no need for intermediate energy storage components. The energy can be directly transferred to the load without a high-power switch. And the device can start up quickly.” The generator also has no rotating parts, increasing efficiency and ease of use.

With some of the largest weapons in development requiring a gigawatt of input power, the researchers say they can produce that with 177 cubic feet of hypersonic plasma (that’s smaller than most vans).

China isn’t ready to deploy the new system just yet. There are plenty of logistical hurdles to sort out in how to transport a device that requires controlled detonation, and just how to handle the gas needed for a second charge when on the move. Still, if the next iteration of the science offers up an automated reloading of the technology, China’s hypersonic weapons just got a colossal burst of power.

>Meet China's latest AI news anchor, a young woman who runs virtual Q&A sessions to teach people propaganda

>Ren Xiaorong debuted on Weibo on Sunday and so far only works with preset questions and responses.  Chinese state media outlet People's Daily has unveiled its digital news anchor, who'll be online 24/7.

>The AI-driven chatbot claims to have learned the skills of "thousands of news anchors." It's so far only been able to answer pre-set questions with propaganda-driven responses.

China has unveiled its latest digital news anchor, an "artificial intelligence" entity that claims to provide 24/7 news coverage.

The anchor, a virtual young woman called Ren Xiaorong, introduced herself to Weibo, China's version of Twitter, in a video published on Sunday by state media People's Daily. Sporting a black jacket and shoulder-length hair tucked behind her ears, Ren claims to harness the professional skills of "thousands of news anchors."

"365 days, 24 hours. News broadcasts about any topic all year round," Ren says in a robotic tone. "Ever single bit of feedback you give will help me improve myself," the bot added in the video.

People on Weibo, a platform that's heavily moderated and censored, still gave Ren a warm welcome despite her limited capabilities.

"This figure looks pretty good! Technology is changing with each passing day," wrote one Weibo user. "If it wasn't for the synthetic dubbing, on first glance you wouldn't be able to tell if this was a virtual person. Will news anchors be replaced by AI in the future?" wrote another.

Ren now joins a small crowd of digital AI news anchors in China, the first of which debuted on state agency Xinhua in 2018. So far, however, the virtual anchor is no rival to ChatGPT. Insider saw that Ren's only function, as of Thursday, is providing pre-programmed answers to questions about China's "Two Sessions" political conference.

Users are able to select one of four preset questions related to the conference, to which Ren will give a generic answer in line with the central government's messaging. One can cycle through different sets of questions, but at no point can users type their own messages to Ren.

China is now racing to find its answer to ChatGPT, the AI chat bot that's disrupted industries.

😆

No doubt. One of the greatest ever

Its bad and bad luck

I dont even remember the last time they made the playoffs

>The six-time NBA champion and five-time MVP became the league’s only Black majority owner when he purchased the Hornets, who were originally named the Bobcats in 2010 for $275 million.

According to Forbes, the Hornets are valued at $1.7 billion. Initially, Jordan became an investor in the team back in 2006 before buying a controlling interest in 2010.

Jordan will retain a minority stake in the franchise. 

Wojnarowski reports that a deal is not imminent but negotiations have significant momentum and the sale would make Plotkin and Schnall co-governors of the Hornets.

>Inflation in the South American country of Argentina has risen past 100 percent for the first time since 1991, according to the government’s latest consumer price index.

The National Institute of Statistics and Census (INDEC) released its February report on Tuesday, pinpointing Argentina’s annual inflation at 102.5 percent as the country continues to suffer from one of its worst economic crises in decades.

In February alone, inflation rose 6.6 percent, with food and beverages identified as the category of items most affected. INDEC credited the 9.8-percent increase in food costs to steep prices for meat, dairy and egg products.

The latest inflationary jump arrives as Argentina contends with a historic drought, its worst in nearly 60 years, and wildfires in areas like the northern Corrientes province.

The country is a leading exporter of soybeans, alongside the United States and Brazil, as well as other agricultural products like corn, wheat and other grains.

But with crops failing in Argentina’s fertile grasslands, known as the Pampas, industry experts have slashed the country’s expected agricultural yields to levels not seen since the turn of the century. High temperatures, believed to be sparked by climate change, have beleaguered the country since May 2022.

Argentina has the second largest economy in South America. But for much of the last century, its market has been notoriously volatile, with a debt crisis in the 1980s spurring chronic hyperinflation throughout that decade.

The inflation crisis hit a peak in 1989 with rates reaching more than 3,000 percent at certain points.

😆

Maybe it's the older recipe/method to frying

I was a big fan of the old KFC chicken recipe and soggy fries/mixed vegetable slaw

These days the chicken taste like it's overfried. Can't hardly taste the pepper and other spices. Fries is hard as chopsticks. Just overall it has gone downhill