Friday, March 24, 2023

Notations On Our World (Special Edition): On America Re The Six Star Rank

Saturday, March 18, 2023

Notations On Our World (Special W-End Edition): On the Eve of Nowruz..The Persian New Year: Persian Poetry & Supplication Compilation - مجموعه اشعار و مناجات فارسی

Friday, March 17, 2023

Notations On Our World (Special Edition): In America

 

NEH Celebrates Black History Month

The National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) has awarded more than $171 million to nearly 3,000 projects exploring the history of Black Americans. Pick up one of these NEH-supported books below. Or browse our Black History Month virtual bookshelf for the most up-to-date collection of NEH-funded projects—from traveling exhibitions and award-winning documentaries to K–12 lesson plans and the papers of Martin Luther King Jr.—for celebrating this, and every, month.

Game of Privilege: An African American History of Golf
Lane Demas’ comprehensive work re-examines the story of golf in America, from George F. Grant’s invention of the golf tee in 1899 to the fight to desegregate courses and to today’s PGA tour. This book is available as an open access e-book as part of the NEH Fellowships Open Book Program

All That She Carried: The Journey of Ashley's Sack, a Black Family Keepsake
Tiya Miles’s 2021 National Book Award winner traces the human history behind an artifact, an embroidered mid-1800s cotton sack, through the lives of three generations of Black women. Read an excerpt in Humanities magazine.

African American Poetry: 250 Years of Struggle & Song
This Library of America anthology, edited by Kevin Young, includes writings from 250 Black poets from the colonial period to the present, featuring lyrical, formal, and protest verse, among others. Read an interview with Young about the project in Humanities magazine.

Overground Railroad: The Green Book and the Roots of Black Travel in America
In her NEH Public Scholar book, Candacy Taylor examines the historical role and enduring impact of the Green Book, a travel guide for Black motorists published from 1936 to 1966, while celebrating the businesses who bravely put their names in the book.

NEH has partnered with the National Trust for Historic Preservation to invest in the cultural stewardship of America’s HBCUs.Now Streaming: Radio & Podcasts

Since the early twentieth century, people have tuned into the radio for news, entertainment, and a connection to the larger world. As the medium has evolved in the internet age, NEH grants have supported the preservation of historical broadcasts and supported the development of innovative programming that explores humanities topics. Learn about some of the projects NEH has supported to safeguard radio’s legacy and bring humanities content to the public in the latest story in the NEH Newsroom and stream NEH-funded podcasts on your favorite service or at the links below.

Innate: How Science Invented the Myth of Race
This ten-episode series from the Science History Institute investigates the historical roots of racism in American science and medicine, tracing the stories of the past to the realities of today. New episodes released weekly.

Audio History Project
Radio Diaries’ Audio History Project explores America’s complex past through audio documentaries, created with oral histories and archival footage. Episodes include “My Iron Lung,” “The End of Smallpox,” and “The Almost Astronaut.”

The Keepers
The Kitchen Sisters Present’s series “The Keepers” tells the story of the archivists, librarians, historians, and curators who do the daily work of caring for our cultural heritage and the collections they maintain. Listen to the second season of “The Keepers,” supported by NEH, on the podcast The Kitchen Sisters Present.


The Summer Day

 

Who made the world?
Who made the swan, and the black bear?
Who made the grasshopper?
This grasshopper, I mean--
the one who has flung herself out of the grass,
the one who is eating sugar out of my hand,
who is moving her jaws back and forth instead of up and down--
who is gazing around with her enormous and complicated eyes.
Now she lifts her pale forearms and thoroughly washes her face.
Now she snaps her wings open, and floats away.
I don't know exactly what a prayer is.
I do know how to pay attention, how to fall down
into the grass, how to kneel in the grass,
how to be idle and blessed, how to stroll through the fields,
which is what I have been doing all day.
Tell me, what else should I have done?
Doesn't everything die at last, and too soon?
Tell me, what is it you plan to do
With your one wild and precious life?



Mary Oliver 

 
Ranked: Who Are the Richest People in Africa?

This infographic ranks the wealthiest 15 billionaires on the African continent by their total net worth and country.

Visualized: The State of the U.S. Labor Market

The U.S. labor market is remarkably strong, with a 3.4% unemployment rate. Which sectors are seeing the highest job gains in 2023?

Mapped: The Largest 15 U.S. Cities by GDP

In this visual, we've ranked the largest U.S. cities by GDP. How does your city rank in terms of economic output?

Ranked: The World's Most Valuable Bank Brands (2019-2023)

This infographic ranks the 10 most valuable bank brands over the past five years (Spoiler: U.S. banks aren't in the top four.)

 SPONSORED 
Visualizing Asia's Dominance in the Titanium Supply Chain

The global titanium supply chain is heavily dependent on Asian countries, including China. See where titanium comes from in this infographic.

How Latin America Drove U.S. Immigration from 1970-2019

The U.S. is built on immigration and this chart shows how LatAm immigration has been one of the biggest drivers of U.S. population growth.

 SPONSORED 
The Drive for a Fully Autonomous Car

Automakers have spent $75 billion in the race to launch the first autonomous car, but just how close are we to ditching the steering wheel?

Mapped: Asia's Biggest Sources of Electricity by Country

Asia is on its way to account for half of the world’s electricity generation by 2025. How is this growing demand currently being met?

 SPONSORED 
Ranked: Air Pollution by Economy

Which economies have hazy air, and which ones enjoy mostly clear skies? Find out in this geographic breakdown of air pollution levels.

Global Energy Consumption by Source, and Carbon Emissions

Fossil fuels and their carbon emissions are being produced globally. These 4 charts look at consumption and emissions around the world.

 SPONSORED 
The Massive Impact of Cigarette Filters on Our Oceans

Around 80% of the 6 trillion cigarettes produced annually are littered, and many of those end up in oceans, adding to the plastic problem.

Vintage Viz: China's Export Economy in the Early 20th Century

This pie chart, circa 1914, is a fascinating breakdown of China's export economy just prior to World War I.

 SPONSORED 
Accelerating a Net-Zero Future with Carbon Credits

To reach net-zero by 2050, trillions in annual investment will be required. Here’s how carbon credits help close this funding gap.

This Week's Flashback Favorites:

Which Countries Feature Women on Banknotes?

Today, only 15% of banknotes feature women. This infographic looks at who these women are and which countries feature them on their currency.


Originally from March 2022

 

Tuesday, February 28, 2023

On Our Virtual Route 66 With Some Final #RandomThoughts For the Month

 As the Month Draws to a Close, we present the following #RandomThoughts as we look forward to the continued privilege to serve: 


The Candy Crush Saga continues (Hakan Nural/Getty Images)

Yesterday’s Market Moves
Dow Jones
33,045 (-0.26%)
S&P 500
3,991 (-0.16%)
Nasdaq
11,507 (+0.13%)
Bitcoin
$24,170 (-0.08%)

Hey Snackers,

Would you like your cold brew with a splash of EVOO? Starbucks has launched a line of olive-oil-infused coffee drinks, including oat milk and oil lattes. The roll-out kicked off this week in Italy (as if Starbucks weren’t unpopular enough in the land of espressos that frowns on to-go culture).

US indexes barely budged yesterday after notes from the Fed’s meeting showed that most officials supported slowing the pace of rate hikes. Meanwhile, the 10-year Treasury yield soared near 4%.

PAUSE

Microsoft plans to share top games like C.O.D. with rivals to save its Activision-quisition

Multiplayer mode on Microsoft is trying to win friends and influence people. The Xbox maker struck deals to share its gaming treasures with some of its biggest rivals in hopes of pushing its $69B Activision Blizzard acquisition across the finish line. Microsoft’s bid to buy the “Call of Duty” maker (which would be the largest tech deal ever) has been on ice as regulators and gaming rivals worry the merger would hurt competition. Yesterday Microsoft announced moves to soothe their concerns:

  • Chipper: Microsoft said it struck a 10-year partnership with Nvidia to make its Xbox PC games available on Nvidia’s GeForce Now cloud gaming service. Microsoft said Nvidia is now “offering its full support” for the Activision acquisition.
  • Switch’d on: Microsoft also sealed a 10-year deal with Nintendo to make the newest “Call of Duty” available on its devices at the same time it drops on Xbox (if the acquisition gets approved).

Thinking outside the Xbox… and getting “Minecraft”-y. Microsoft said the Nvidia and Nintendo deals will bring C.O.D. to 150M more people, addressing concerns that the popular game would be less available post-acquisition. But one mega-rival remains: Sony. Microsoft’s trying to convince the PlayStation maker that it’ll keep C.O.D. on PlayStation if the deal goes through, but Sony hadn’t accepted a deal as of yesterday. Microsoft said Sony makes up 70% of the global console market.

THE TAKEAWAY

Sharing the treasure can win you the chest... While it’s not ideal for Microsoft to share its blockbuster-game trove, it could be a small price to pay to own Activision’s franchise treasure. With console sales slumping, Microsoft wants to stack its cloud gaming service, Xbox Game, with top titles to lure subscribers. And in the gaming wars, a hit title like C.O.D. could be worth the battle.

ROC

Coinbase leans into stablecoins as regulators set their sights on the crypto asset class

New coin, who dis?… Coinbase said it plans to list a new stablecoin next week amid a flurry of regulatory attention directed at the crypto asset class. Dubbed Euro Coin (EUROC), the Circle-issued crypto is pegged to the euro — aka: it’s designed to = 1 euro. Circle says EUROC is fully backed by euros held in reserve, similar to its US-dollar-pegged stablecoin, USDC, the second-largest stablecoin by market cap.

Stables get the shake-up… The SEC is investigating whether stablecoins violate investor-protection laws. It’s looking into Coinbase’s and Circle’s stablecoin businesses, though Coinbase says USDC is “not a security.” Meanwhile, the SEC reportedly plans to sue crypto-services company Paxos, arguing that its Binance-branded BUSD stablecoin is an unregistered security. The scrutiny is problematic for crypto exchanges as stablecoins are increasingly important to their bottom lines:

  • Interest-ed: In its earnings report this week, Coinbase said it had earned $146M in interest income from USDC — nearly one-fourth of its total quarterly revenue.
  • Fi-nanced: Last month (before its market cap nosedived) BUSD stablecoin transactions made up 40% of Binance's trading volume.
THE TAKEAWAY

The road to diversification can be bumpy… As crypto winter scared off investors, exchanges reliant on transaction fees saw their revenue plummet. Coinbase's trading volume sank 50% last year, making $$ earned from stablecoins (and staking) more important than ever. Now regulatory scrutiny could threaten that #diversification. While Coinbase said its "regulatory focus" will position it for success, this week it also said it might decide not to pull a crypto off its exchange — even if the SEC says it's a security.

DEFI(NE)

Heard on the Block: "golden cross"

⚽ Like when a team pulls ahead after being down the entire first half…

In the world of technical analysis, when a stock's 50-day moving average crosses above its 200-day moving average, it makes a cross-like pattern on price charts that’s referred to as a "golden cross." Some investors consider it a bullish signal. Bitcoin just had a golden cross moment last weekend — its first since August 2021.

What else we're Snackin'
  • PriMed: Amazon closed its $3.9B acquisition of OneMedical, the swanky membership-based clinic chain that could help it Prime-ify healthcare. But regulators are still eyeing issues with the deal.
  • OOTD: Chinese fast-fashion titan Shein is building hype for a potential blockbuster IPO this year. The affordable online retailer projected that its sales would more than double to $60B by 2025.
  • Meds: Diabetes drugs like Ozempic are gaining popularity with people who don’t have diabetes but are looking to lose weight. Now these drugs are in short supply for the diabetes patients who depend on them.
  • Sus: Microsoft lifted some limits on its ChatGPT-fueled Bing search, which it imposed after disturbing responses from the AI tool went viral. Think: telling a journalist to leave his wife to be with it.
  • Tarjay: Target said it’ll spend $100M to expand its package hubs and improve next-day delivery. The retailer is investing in e-comm to compete with Amazon and Walmart, even as online shopping slows.

 

  FEATURED STORY  
Consumer Price Changes, by Good or Service
(2000-2022)

We think of inflation as a single number, but in reality price changes happen differently across goods and services.

Some prices increase dramatically, and others fall over time. Here's how that looks in the U.S. since 2000.

View the Infographic
 
 Can Hochul Offset New York’s ‘Age of Austerity’?

Since taking office, Governor Kathy Hochul has championed public higher ed and boosted its funding. For many long-suffering SUNY and CUNY campuses, her support won’t make up for a decade of disinvestment. »

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OCR Complaints Show Pandemic’s Effects

Education Department’s Office for Civil Rights is investigating more claims about disability discrimination on college campuses as well as allegations of antisemitism as more individuals seek out the office for help. »


TODAY’S NEWS    view all news »

Stanford Raises Tuition Sharply but Expands Aid

Stanford cited inflation as the cause for a 7 percent tuition hike, which will be offset by increased aid for many students. Experts expect less severe increases at other institutions. »

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Biden Administration to Rescind Part of Religious Freedom Rule

But the administration says it is standing firm on religious freedom in higher education. »

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How One of the Largest Universities in the U.S. Became a Sustainability Pioneer

Content sponsored and provided by ENGIE North America

Through an innovative long-term partnership with ENGIE, the university improved energy efficiency by 12% within four years, while also receiving $150 million up front to support academic, research, and community programs. Learn more in this case study. »

An Expanded Faculty Role in the Presidential Search

Pitzer College significantly widens participation for faculty, staff and students in its hunt for a new leader, overcoming concerns about candidate privacy and strengthening buy-in for the eventual choice. »

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Marijuana Use on Campus Grew as Legalization Spread

A study finds that increased cannabis use among students, including vaping, is common on college campuses. »

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Live UpdatesLatest News on Higher Education

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QUICK TAKES    view all quick takes »

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