Bitcoin has been around since 2009, but it really wasn’t until recently that it finally hit the mainstream consciousness of investors and the general public. As of this writing 1 bitcoin is now worth over $5,600 USD. And its meteoric rise doesn’t look to be abating any time soon. Its potential to reshape how we understand and use money is real. But the big question is why are banks and governments so steadfastly against it?
Continue reading… “Why your bank hates you for loving bitcoin”
The United States has one of the worst rates of child hunger among high-income countries. A recent UNICEF analysis puts it in perspective: About 20% of American children live in food-insecure households, meaning they lack access to safe and nutritious foods.
Continue reading… “One in five American children live with hunger”
Stockton, California Mayor Michael Tubbs is leading the charge on a basic income experiment in his recovering town.
Distressed Communities Index
Economic prosperity is concentrated in America’s elite zip codes, but economic stability outside of those communities is rapidly deteriorating.
Continue reading… “The large parts of America left behind by today’s economy”
Rich people are going to find it easier to adapt to automation.
Continue reading… “Robots and AI are going to make social inequality even worse, says new report”
Iconic mall-based department chains, like Sears and JC Penney, are announcing hundreds of store closures in 2017. More chains are expected to announce shutdowns over the next decade. Experts say the shuttered locations could turn into other businesses that benefit from the large square footage, like fitness centers, churches, offices, public libraries, movie theaters, and medical clinics.
Continue reading… “Future of retail – what happens to the empty stores?”
Bytecoin, an untraceable privacy-preserving cryptocurrency, has just seen an astronomical triple-digit percent surge in price. The cryptocurrency soared to the all time high market capitalization of $444,000,000, before calming down to around $300,000,000 and establishing itself at the top 10 cryptocurrencies by market capitalization at the time of writing (according to CoinMarketCap). A symbolic turning point for one of the first untraceable cryptocurrencies launched in 2012.
Continue reading… “Cryptocurrency wars – Untraceable coins storming into top 10”
If you’re impress with the progress we’re making with A.I. so far, hang onto your hats. We’re just getting started. Over the next 10 years, artificial intelligence will make more progress than in the fifty before it, combined. With countless quickly oncoming applications to business, government, and personal life, its influence will soon touch absolutely every aspect of our lives.
Here are 27 surprising ways life and society that will be forever changed by artificial intelligence over the coming decade.
Continue reading… “27 common uses for A.I. in 2027 that don’t exist today”
Amazon is looking for a staggering 1,300 warehouse units across Europe to fulfil its commitments for its one-hour Prime Now delivery service.
The online retailer is understood to be seeking small warehouse units in urban locations near major cities, as consumers increasingly demand shorter delivery times for goods from laptops to lawnmowers.
Continue reading… “Amazon hunting for 1,300 European warehouses as battle for fast delivery hots up”
Social Security is a program that forms the financial foundation for a majority of our nation’s retired workers, and that’s not expected to change anytime soon. We’re really dependent on Social Security income, and that could be a problem
Data from the Social Security Administration (SSA) shows that 61% of all current retired workers receiving benefits count on Social Security to provide at least half of their monthly income.
When craft brewers get together, we agree that this is the greatest time in history to be a beer drinker in America. In 1981, there were only 82 breweries in the United States, and our beer, fizzy and flavorless, was the laughingstock of the beer world. Today, America is home to over 5,300 small, innovative craft breweries making unique, flavorful, creative brews.
But we also agree that the horizon isn’t so bright. After years of 15 percent growth, the craft sector is down to the single digits. Part of that is to be expected in a maturing part of any market — but it’s also a result of a pushback by a handful of gargantuan global brewers, aided by slack government antitrust oversight. I worry that yet another major shift in the beer landscape is upon us — and this time, American consumers will be the losers.
Continue reading… “Have we reached peak beer?”
Every summer, tens of thousands of migrant workers swarm a remote area of Northern California — the marijuana-growing capital of the US — to find work as “trimmers” after the weed has been harvested.
Their job is to prune the fluffy, green buds with small pairs of scissors to clear them of leaves before they wind up on dispensary shelves or in dealers’ pockets.
The work is arduous and pays between $100 and $300 a day for 10 to 15 hours of labor on the black market, which generated 87% of pot sales in North America in 2016.
By delving into the futuring techniques of Futurist Thomas Frey, you’ll embark on an enlightening journey.
Learn More about this exciting program.