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1 2 From creating an app that drafts contract farming to using sensors for soil health and using AI to suggest the right amount of fertiliser to use, over 200 agricultural innovators from across the country participated in the finals of the Smart India Hackathon at IIT Hyderabad on Thursday. Reports Ashresh Marupaka WINNERS The winners are Void Seekers of Noida Institute of Engineering and Technology, Greater Noida, Yeshwantrao Chavan College of Engineering, Nagpur, Techno Main Salt Lake, Kolkata and AGRITECH TITAN- Welingkar Institute of Management, Mumbai. The teams received 1 lakh cash prize. Participants have to solve four problems on development of mobile app for direct market access for farmers, an AI-driven crop disease prediction and management system, a sustainable fertiliser usage optimiser for higher yield, and an assured contract farming system for stable market access. INNOVATIONS App for AI-driven crop disease detection Innovators: E&Co from VIT Chennai Problem: Delay in identifying crop disease can lead to losses for farmers Solution: App can detect & determine nature of diseases in real time using images. Integrated with climate data, it can plan crop cycles App for direct market access Innovators: FarmConnect from Mukesh Patel School of Technology Management and Engineering, Shirpur, Maharashtra Problem: Middlemen exploit farmers by charging commissions for sale of produce to wholesalers & retailers Solution: App allows farmers to list their produce for direct bidding without middlemen. Farmers can set starting bid for wholesale quantities and sell retail quantities at fixed prices. App facilitates transportation of goods by connecting with logistics partners, providing order tracking & dispute resolution App for fertiliser administration Innovators: Go Pandas 24/7 from Acropolis Institute of Technology and Research, Indore Problem: Unscientific and inappropriate use of fertilisers damaging soil & reducing farm output Solution: App uses real-time soil data to determine amount & type of fertiliser to use. Farmers can get tailored solutions using NPK (nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium) sensors or have their soil tested in a lab, after which app uses machine learning to determine right fertiliser App for seamless contract farming Innovators: Binary Brains_5 from GSFC University, Vadodara Problem: Legal hassles & lengthy procedures discourage farmers and customers from entering into agricultural agreements Solution: App helps draft & notarise contracts between farmers & customers. Based on crop type, quantity & delivery time, app drafts contracts & gets them e-signed by both parties. By integrating GST & scrapping the net for trending crops, farmers & consumers can enter into two types of contracts: sponsored (raw material provided by the contractor) or private (farmer also takes care of production for contractor). The app can track latest prices at APMC markets, and help resolve disputes through chatbot Stay updated with the latest news on Times of India . Don't miss daily games like Crossword , Sudoku , and Mini Crossword .None
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By ALANNA DURKIN RICHER WASHINGTON (AP) — One year after the Jan. 6, 2021 , U.S. Capitol attack, Attorney General Merrick Garland said the Justice Department was committed to holding accountable all perpetrators “at any level” for “the assault on our democracy.” That bold declaration won’t apply to at least one person: Donald Trump. Special counsel Jack Smith’s move on Monday to abandon the federal election interference case against Trump means jurors will likely never decide whether the president-elect is criminally responsible for his attempts to cling to power after losing the 2020 campaign. The decision to walk away from the election charges and the separate classified documents case against Trump marks an abrupt end of the Justice Department’s unprecedented legal effort that once threatened his liberty but appears only to have galvanized his supporters. The abandonment of the cases accusing Trump of endangering American democracy and national security does away with the most serious legal threats he was facing as he returns to the White House. It was the culmination of a monthslong defense effort to delay the proceedings at every step and use the criminal allegations to Trump’s political advantage, putting the final word in the hands of voters instead of jurors. “We always knew that the rich and powerful had an advantage, but I don’t think we would have ever believed that somebody could walk away from everything,” said Stephen Saltzburg, a George Washington University law professor and former Justice Department official. “If there ever was a Teflon defendant, that’s Donald Trump.” While prosecutors left the door open to the possibility that federal charges could be re-filed against Trump after he leaves office, that seems unlikely. Meanwhile, Trump’s presidential victory has thrown into question the future of the two state criminal cases against him in New York and Georgia. Trump was supposed to be sentenced on Tuesday after his conviction on 34 felony counts in his New York hush money case , but it’s possible the sentencing could be delayed until after Trump leaves office, and the defense is pushing to dismiss the case altogether. Smith’s team stressed that their decision to abandon the federal cases was not a reflection of the merit of the charges, but an acknowledgement that they could not move forward under longstanding Justice Department policy that says sitting presidents cannot face criminal prosecution. Trump’s presidential victory set “at odds two fundamental and compelling national interests: On the one hand, the Constitution’s requirement that the President must not be unduly encumbered in fulfilling his weighty responsibilities . . . and on the other hand, the Nation’s commitment to the rule of law,” prosecutors wrote in court papers. The move just weeks after Trump’s victory over Vice President Kamala Harris underscores the immense personal stake Trump had in the campaign in which he turned his legal woes into a political rallying cry. Trump accused prosecutors of bringing the charges in a bid to keep him out of the White House, and he promised revenge on his perceived enemies if he won a second term. “If Donald J. Trump had lost an election, he may very well have spent the rest of his life in prison,” Vice President-elect JD Vance, wrote in a social media post on Monday. “These prosecutions were always political. Now it’s time to ensure what happened to President Trump never happens in this country again.” After the Jan. 6 attack by Trump supporters that left more than 100 police officers injured, Republican leader Mitch McConnell and several other Republicans who voted to acquit Trump during his Senate impeachment trial said it was up to the justice system to hold Trump accountable. The Jan. 6 case brought last year in Washington alleged an increasingly desperate criminal conspiracy to subvert the will of voters after Trump’s 2020 loss, accusing Trump of using the angry mob of supporters that attacked the Capitol as “a tool” in his campaign to pressure then-Vice President Mike Pence and obstruct the certification of Democrat Joe Biden’s victory. Hundreds of Jan. 6 rioters — many of whom have said they felt called to Washington by Trump — have pleaded guilty or been convicted by juries of federal charges at the same courthouse where Trump was supposed to stand trial last year. As the trial date neared, officials at the courthouse that sits within view of the Capitol were busy making plans for the crush of reporters expected to cover the historic case. But Trump’s argument that he enjoyed absolute immunity from prosecution quickly tied up the case in appeals all the way up to the Supreme Court. The high court ruled in July that former presidents have broad immunity from prosecution , and sent the case back to the trial court to decide which allegations could move forward. But the case was dismissed before the trial court could get a chance to do so. Related Articles National Politics | After delay, Trump signs agreement with Biden White House to begin formal transition handoff National Politics | Rudy Giuliani in a courtroom outburst accuses judge in assets case of being unfair, drawing a rebuke National Politics | Surveillance tech advances by Biden could aid in Trump’s promised crackdown on immigration National Politics | Expecting challenges, blue states vow to create ‘firewall’ of abortion protections National Politics | Washington power has shifted. Here’s how the ACA may shift, too The other indictment brought in Florida accused Trump of improperly storing at his Mar-a-Lago estate sensitive documents on nuclear capabilities, enlisting aides and lawyers to help him hide records demanded by investigators and cavalierly showing off a Pentagon “plan of attack” and classified map. But U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon dismissed the case in July on grounds that Smith was illegally appointed . Smith appealed to the Atlanta-based 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, but abandoned that appeal on Monday. Smith’s team said it would continue its fight in the appeals court to revive charges against Trump’s two co-defendants because “no principle of temporary immunity applies to them.” In New York, jurors spent weeks last spring hearing evidence in a state case alleging a Trump scheme to illegally influence the 2016 election through a hush money payment to a porn actor who said the two had sex. New York prosecutors recently expressed openness to delaying sentencing until after Trump’s second term, while Trump’s lawyers are fighting to have the conviction dismissed altogether. In Georgia, a trial while Trump is in office seems unlikely in a state case charging him and more than a dozen others with conspiring to overturn his 2020 election loss in the state. The case has been on hold since an appeals court agreed to review whether to remove Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis over her romantic relationship with the special prosecutor she had hired to lead the case. Associated Press reporter Lisa Mascaro in Washington contributed.
SEOUL, South Korea — South Korea's embattled President Yoon Suk Yeol avoided an opposition-led attempt to impeach him over his short-lived imposition of martial law , as most ruling party lawmakers boycotted a parliamentary vote Saturday to deny a two-thirds majority needed to suspend his presidential powers. The scrapping of the motion is expected to intensify protests calling for Yoon’s ouster and deepen political chaos in South Korea, with a survey suggesting a majority of South Koreans support the president’s impeachment. Yoon’s martial law declaration drew criticism from his own ruling conservative People Power Party, but the party is also determined to oppose Yoon’s impeachment apparently because it fears losing the presidency to liberals. After the motion fell through, members of the main liberal opposition Democratic Party rallied inside the National Assembly, chanting slogans calling for Yoon's impeachment or resignation. The party's floor leader, Park Chan-dae, said it will soon prepare for a new impeachment motion. Opposition parties could submit a new impeachment motion after a new parliamentary session opens next Wednesday. “We'll surely impeach Yoon Suk Yeol, who is the greatest risk to Republic of Korea,” party leader Lee Jae-myung said. “We'll surely bring back this country to normal before Christmas Day or year's end.” Many experts worry Yoon won’t be able to serve out his remaining 2 1⁄2 years in office. They say some PPP lawmakers could eventually join opposition parties’ efforts to impeach Yoon if public demands for it grow further. The ruling party risks "further public outrage and national confusion if they don’t find a formula fast for Yoon’s departure,” said Duyeon Kim, a senior analyst at the Center for a New American Security in Washington. PPP chair Han Dong-hun said his party will seek Yoon’s “orderly” early exit but didn’t say when he can resign. Protests against Yoon are swelling On Saturday, tens of thousands of people packed several blocks of roads leading to the National Assembly, waving banners, shouting slogans and dancing. Protesters also gathered in front of PPP’s headquarters near the Assembly, shouting for its lawmakers to vote to impeach Yoon. A smaller crowd of Yoon’s supporters, which still seemed to be in the thousands, rallied elsewhere in Seoul, calling the impeachment attempt unconstitutional. Impeaching Yoon required support from 200 of the National Assembly's 300 members. The Democratic Party and five other small opposition parties, which filed the motion, have 192 seats combined. But only three lawmakers from PPP participated in the vote. The motion was scrapped without ballot counting because the number of votes didn’t reach 200. National Assembly Speaker Woo Won Shik called the result “very regrettable” and an embarrassing moment for the country’s democracy. If Yoon is impeached, his powers will be suspended until the Constitutional Court decides whether to remove him from office. If he is removed, an election to replace him must take place within 60 days. Credit: Ahn Young-joon, AP Protesters demand South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol's impeachment, Dec. 7, 2024. The signs read, "Impeach Yoon Suk Yeol." The president apologizes for turmoil Earlier Saturday, Yoon issued an apology over the martial law decree, saying he won’t shirk legal or political responsibility for the declaration and promising not to make another attempt to impose it. He said would leave it to his party to chart a course through the country’s political turmoil, “including matters related to my term in office.” “The declaration of this martial law was made out of my desperation. But in the course of its implementation, it caused anxiety and inconveniences to the public. I feel very sorry over that and truly apologize to the people who must have been shocked a lot,” Yoon said. Since taking office in 2022, Yoon has struggled to push his agenda through an opposition-controlled parliament and grappled with low approval ratings amid scandals involving himself and his wife. In his martial law announcement on Tuesday night, Yoon called parliament a “den of criminals” bogging down state affairs and vowed to eliminate “shameless North Korea followers and anti-state forces.” The declaration of martial law was the first of its kind in more than 40 years in South Korea. The turmoil has paralyzed South Korean politics and sparked alarm among key diplomatic partners like the U.S. and Japan. “Yoon’s credibility overseas has been undermined by declaring martial law, so he won’t be able to exercise leadership in his foreign policies especially when his days are numbered,” Kim, the analyst, said. “Its government bureaucracy will need to continue business as usual for existing alliance and foreign policy initiatives as best it can because there is a lot of important work to do globally.” Tuesday night saw special forces troops encircling the parliament building and army helicopters hovering over it, but the military withdrew after the National Assembly unanimously voted to overturn the decree, forcing Yoon to lift it before daybreak Wednesday. Eighteen lawmakers from the ruling party voted to reject Yoon’s martial law decree along with opposition lawmakers. PPP later decided to oppose Yoon's impeachment motion. Yoon’s speech fueled speculation that he and his party may push for a constitutional amendment to shorten his term, instead of accepting impeachment, as a way to ease public anger over the marital law and facilitate Yoon’s early exit from office. Lee told reporters that Yoon’s speech was “greatly disappointing” and that the only way forward is his immediate resignation or impeachment. His party called Yoon’s martial law “unconstitutional, illegal rebellion or coup.” Lawmakers on Saturday first voted on a bill appointing a special prosecutor to investigate stock price manipulation allegations surrounding Yoon’s wife. Yoon accused of ordering arrests of politicians On Friday, Han, who criticized Yoon’s martial law declaration, said he had received intelligence that during the brief period of martial law Yoon ordered the country’s defense counterintelligence commander to arrest unspecified key politicians based on accusations of “anti-state activities.” Hong Jang-won, first deputy director of South Korea’s spy agency, told lawmakers Friday that Yoon had ordered him to help the defense counterintelligence unit to detain key politicians including Han, Lee and Woo. The Defense Ministry said Friday it suspended three military commanders including the head of the defense counterintelligence unit over their involvement in enforcing martial law. Vice Defense Minister Kim Seon Ho has told parliament that Defense Minister Kim Yong Hyun ordered the deployment of troops to the National Assembly. Opposition parties accused Kim of recommending to Yoon to enforce martial law. Kim Yong Hyun resigned Thursday, and prosecutors imposed an overseas travel ban on him.
B.C. Premier David Eby said he supports the proposed “all-of-Canada approach” to respond to president-elect Donald Trump’s tariffs threat. Trump has said both Canada and Mexico need to address illegal migration and fentanyl trafficking into the U.S. or face tariffs on all American imports. On Wednesday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau held a second virtual First Ministers’ Meeting on the Canada-U.S. relationship. In the past, Eby has had some strong words about the proposed tariffs and the impact they could have in British Columbia. That did not change following the meeting on Wednesday. “President-elect Trump’s unjustified threat of tariffs on Canadian goods would be a disaster for workers and businesses on both sides of the border, and we support the proposed all-of-Canada approach to respond to this threat,” Eby said in a statement. “At (Wednesday’s) national meeting, I brought forward the issues and the solutions I have been hearing from people and businesses in British Columbia. We will keep doing our part in B.C. to bring together business and labour leaders to safeguard local industries against Trump’s tariffs, and keep good jobs right here in B.C.” Ontario Premier Doug Ford said after the meeting that the federal government has agreed to his “specific asks” to add police resources to the border and have Health Canada share data on where fentanyl found in Canada is originating from. “They have a plan, but it’s one thing to have a plan. Now we have to implement it,” he told reporters at Queen’s Park. Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland, who also co-chairs the revived cabinet committee on U.S. relations with LeBlanc, told reporters several premiers spoke “strongly in favour of a robust Canadian response to unjustified tariffs” if Trump follows through on his threat in January.
Olivia Olson scored 18 points, including eight straight to open the fourth quarter, as the No. 23 Michigan Wolverines survived a 60-54 scare from the Northwestern Wildcats in the Big Ten opener for each team in Ann Arbor, Mich. Northwestern (4-4, 0-1 Big Ten) led throughout the third quarter and took a four-point lead into the fourth, but Olson capped her 8-0 burst with a 3-pointer, and Syla Swords also nailed a trey to put the Wolverines (8-1, 1-0) ahead 50-44. Michigan has won eight straight games since opening the season with a six-point loss to then-No. 1 South Carolina. Caileigh Walsh's 3-pointer put the Wildcats back in front 53-52 with 3:36 to go. Michigan responded by scoring eight of the game's last nine points, six by Jordan Hobbs. Hobbs finished with 16 points and teammate Mila Holloway had 10. Kyla Jones led Northwestern with 14 points and Walsh notched 10 before fouling out. No. 4 Texas 93, James Madison 62 Madison Booker, Jordan Lee and Rori Harmon dominated the first half as the Longhorns clobbered the host Dukes in Harrisonburg, Va. Booker scored 21 points, Lee added 20 and Harmon 19 by combining on 25-of-33 shooting. They had 49 of their points in the first half as Texas (7-1) piled up a 58-29 halftime lead. The Longhorns, who entered seventh in the nation in scoring at 90 points per game, shot 54 percent for the game to 40 percent for the Dukes. Roshala Scott led James Madison (7-3) with 22 points and Peyton McDaniel and Ashanti Barnes had 12 apiece. McDaniel added eight rebounds for the Dukes, who had 24 turnovers. No. 10 Notre Dame 93, Syracuse 62 The Fighting Irish pulled away from a seven-point halftime lead to demolish the host Orange in the ACC opener for both schools. The trio of Sonia Citron, Hannah Hidalgo and Olivia Miles led Notre Dame's win with double-doubles. Citron had 25 points and 11 rebounds, Hidalgo racked up 24 and 10, respectively, and Miles shone with 20 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists. Hidalgo, third in Division I in scoring (24.6 ppg), netted nine points and Citron had eight in the third quarter, as Notre Dame (7-2, 1-0 ACC) outscored Syracuse (4-6, 0-1) 29-13 to pull away. Keira Scott posted 16 points and Sophie Burrows tacked on 13 for the Orange, who shot only 32.5 percent. The Irish shot 50 percent and thrived despite 20 turnovers. No. 16 North Carolina 72, Coppin State 46 The Tar Heels built a comfortable halftime lead and used its bench players freely in devouring the Eagles in Chapel Hill, N.C. North Carolina (9-1) entered second-best in the nation in scoring defense at 49.1 points per game and excelled again, holding Coppin State to 27.3 percent shooting. Meanwhile, the Tar Heels shot 44.4 percent while having 12 players enter the scoring column, led by Maria Gakdeng's 10 points on 5-of-6 shooting. Reniya Kelly scored six of her eight points in the first quarter as North Carolina took a 23-13 lead. The Tar Heels grew the lead to 46-27 by intermission. Tiffany Hammond and Angel Jones scored 12 points apiece for Coppin State (6-5), and Laila Lawrence added 10 points with 10 rebounds. No. 18 Ole Miss 85, Tennessee State 38 The Rebels had more points by halftime than the Lady Tigers scored in the game after jumping out to a 14-2 lead in the first quarter and 44-19 by intermission. Kennedy Todd-Williams led Ole Miss (6-3) with 15 points and seven rebounds, and Sira Thienou added 12 and six, respectively. The Rebels shot 46 percent for the game. Ole Miss began the day seventh in the nation in scoring defense at 49.8 points allowed per game, and it punished Tennessee State to the tune of 23.6 percent shooting and 22 forced turnovers. XaiOnna Whitfield led the Lady Tigers (4-6) with 10 points. No. 20 Iowa State 82, Central Michigan 56 Audi Crooks scored 19 points on 9-of-12 shooting and added 10 rebounds as the Cyclones slammed the Chippewas in Ames, Iowa. Emily Ryan netted 10 of her 12 points in the first quarter and Crooks scored nine in the period as Iowa State (8-2) jumped out to a 31-13 lead and enjoyed a cushion of at least 18 points the rest of the way. Addy Brown added 18 points for the Cyclones, who shot 52.5 percent and rolled despite having 20 turnovers. Jayda Mosley led Central Michigan (3-6) with 11 points and Madi Morson and Ayanna-Sarai Darrington added 10 apiece. The Chippewas shot only 33.3 percent from the floor and had 26 turnovers. No. 24 Michigan State 89, DePaul 61 The unbeaten Spartans put four scorers in double figures as they systematically disposed of the Blue Demons in East Lansing, Mich. Jaddan Simmons finished with 18 points, five rebounds and five assists, and Julia Ayrault stuffed the stat sheet with 17 points, 12 rebounds, five assists and three steals for Michigan State (9-0). Emma Shumate and Jocelyn Tate had 12 and 10 points, respectively. Jorie Allen put up 15 points, 11 boards, seven assists and three steals and Grace Carstensen also notched 15 points for DePaul (3-7), which shot just 28.8 percent despite hitting 9 of 18 of its 3-point attempts. The Spartans led by seven after one quarter and 17 at halftime before coasting through the second half. No. 25 Nebraska 84, Minnesota 65 Strong first quarters by Callin Hake and Amiah Hargrove sent the Cornhuskers on their way to pinning the first loss on the Golden Gophers in the Big Ten Conference opener for each team. Hake scored eight of her 11 points in the first period and Hargrove eight of her 10 as Nebraska (8-1, 1-0 Big Ten) seized a 27-11 lead and never looked back. Hargrove scored eight of the Cornhuskers' 10 straight points to end the quarter. Alberte Rimdal led the winners with 12 points and Alexis Markowski added 11 with nine rebounds. Mallory Heyer collected 12 points and eight rebounds for Minnesota (10-1, 0-1). Tori McKinney scored 11 points and Grace Crocholski and Alexsia Rose 10 apiece, but the Golden Gophers hit just 35.2 percent of their shots. This article first appeared on Field Level Media and was syndicated with permission.Commanders place kicker Austin Seibert on injured reserve30 Amazing Gifts for People Who Love to Cook
Macomb, Michigan-The secret of US President-elect Trump’s admiration for Elon Musk became clear to me during an interview where Trump narrated a fascinating story about a space rocket. Trump described how, after traveling back to Earth, instead of landing in a desert, sea, lake, or some other desolate place, the rocket executed a controlled descent. Swinging and turning wildly with a large flame roaring from its exhaust, it slowed down and gently positioned itself to land precisely on the same launcher from which it was fired. Astonished by this incredible feat of science, human ingenuity, and innovation, Trump said he immediately called Elon Musk to confirm: “Was it you?” When Musk replied affirmatively, Trump remarked, “No country on the face of the Earth could do it, not even the USA, but you did it.” This inspired me to dig deeper into Elon Musk’s wild dreams of space exploration and peek into his visionary mind. After some research, I was left reeling with amazement. Musk’s mind, it seems, is one that might have been born many years into the future. In one of his interviews, Musk mentioned the possibility of mankind traveling at twice the speed of light—not by burning any fuel but by bending time and space. He explained that by “squeezing space,” which behaves like a giant plastic sheet, we could bring distant areas of the universe closer to us without traveling any actual distance. This radical idea is rooted in Einstein’s General Theory of Relativity. Musk referred to the concept of creating a “warp bubble” that contracts space in front of a spacecraft and expands it behind, effectively allowing the craft to traverse vast distances without exceeding the speed of light within its local frame. This concept, known as the Alcubierre Drive, was proposed by physicist Miguel Alcubierre in 1994. It suggests that by warping spacetime, a spacecraft could achieve effective Faster-Than-Light (FTL) travel without violating the laws of physics. Elon Musk is captivated by this theoretically possible feat and is actively working on advanced propulsion technologies and leveraging artificial intelligence (AI) to solve complex challenges. Reports suggest that Musk has created an AI supercomputer, known as “Colossus,” located in Memphis, Tennessee. It is equipped with 100,000 of the latest Nvidia GPUs, liquid-cooled with massive water systems, and powered by Tesla Megapack batteries. According to Musk, Colossus is not merely a machine but a gateway—designed to fuel “Grok,” an AI model capable of propelling humanity beyond the boundaries of human understanding. Musk envisions Grok solving some of humanity’s greatest mysteries, such as the enigma of black holes, dark matter, and dark energy. He believes we are on the verge of unlocking the secrets of the cosmos—or perhaps discovering something even more unimaginable waiting for us on the other side. In another video, Elon Musk shared an idea that showcased his deep understanding of cosmology, explaining it in simple terms rather than relying on complex mathematical calculations or difficult-to-comprehend concepts. He stated that, while technically traveling faster than the speed of light might be theoretically possible, it remains a difficult feat to achieve at this point in time. He explained this by highlighting how space itself can play tricks on us. While we cannot travel faster than the speed of light, the fabric of space is moving at speeds faster than light. In another video, Musk described a hypothetical scenario involving a spaceship that could take you to distant stars in the blink of an eye. This concept, known as the “warp drive,” involves a revolutionary way of thinking about travel. Instead of zooming through space, a warp drive would work by stretching space in front of the ship and compressing it behind. Musk illustrated this concept by likening space to a giant rubber sheet. Imagine pulling a distant star closer to you instantly. By pulling the space in front of you closer and pushing the space behind you away, you could move forward without physically moving. This means it would be possible to travel to other planets and even distant stars faster than light, all without breaking the laws of physics. Reaching this point of understanding and innovation has not been easy for Elon Musk. When he first introduced the concept of commercial space exploration, the entire world seemed to turn against him. During a Congressional Senate hearing in 2010, many veteran space legends, including Neil Armstrong, publicly opposed the idea of commercial space exploration. Musk later revealed that this opposition brought him to tears. However, this criticism did not deter him. Today, SpaceX is approaching a $250 billion valuation and has conducted more than 400 launches over the past 14 years, including 15 crewed missions. Of these, ten were under contract with NASA to transport astronauts to the International Space Station (ISS). Under President elect Trump, a major shake-up in U.S. space policy began to take shape. There are discussions about potentially canceling future iterations of NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS) or even abandoning it altogether. Plans for Gateway, a proposed space station in lunar orbit, were also reconsidered in favor of expanding commercial contracts with companies like SpaceX. This shift aimed to accelerate efforts to send humans to Mars, a vision Musk has championed for years. Musk’s ultimate goal is to colonize Mars. His vision includes building up to 1,000 Starships a year to transport people between Earth and the red planet. As in the past, this ambitious idea is not without controversy. Many conventional scientists caution that it will require years of further research and development, as the technologies necessary to sustain life on Mars do not yet exist. However, just as Neil Armstrong and others once doubted the feasibility of commercial space exploration, these conventional scientists may not be able to deter Elon Musk from venturing into this arena. Musk has a track record of defying skepticism, as demonstrated when many believed rockets could not and would not land back on their launch pads. Musk proved them wrong by stating that if a rocket can ascend along a specific trajectory, it can also descend along the same path to return to its launcher. Once again, Musk’s determination may turn the improbable into reality. The democrats like Obama and Joe Biden had had assumed Elon Musk a biggest adversary and did whatever they could to deter him for visualizing his wild dreams. But they could not dampened his innovation and creativity and now with Donald Trump in power, and Musk himself in the driving seat to cut down on bureaucracy and and eliminate overregulations which according to him stifle entrepreneurship, cuttle creativity and slow down economic growth, the world should keep its figure cross and await for many more mind boggling innovations by many innovators like Elon Musk which might multiply by the enabling environment under Donald Trump. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Δ document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() );
Ritholtz Wealth Management’s Josh Brown created a new index that tracks the most popular stocks in some of the hottest themes of the market . What To Know: Last Tuesday on " The Compound & Friends " podcast, Brown set the stage for unveiling the “Degen Dow.” “I think that if we were to make a list of the biggest themes of 2024, one of those themes would have been degeneracy,” Brown said. It’s tough to say precisely how the word “degen” came to be, but some believe it originates from the term “degenerate gambler” in sports betting and gambling culture, according to The Wall Street Journal. It’s also used by crypto traders and meme-stock traders who often make risky short-term bets based on momentum and steer clear of traditional ways of assessing investments. Brown put together a list of the top stocks used as trading vehicles by “degen” traders using platforms such as Robinhood, Stocktwits and Reddit’s WallStreetBets . The list includes high beta Bitcoin BTC/USD -related names, gaming and gambling companies, AI names, space theme plays, Cathie Wood favorites and president-elect Donald Trump -related stocks. “All the major degen food groups are represented,” Brown said. Here’s a look at all of the stocks that made it into the “Degen Dow.” Archer Aviation Inc ACHR AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc AMC Applovin Corp APP Coinbase Global Inc COIN Carvana Co CVNA Trump Media & Technology Group Corp DJT DraftKings Inc DKNG Flutter Entertainment Plc FLUT Geo Group Inc GEO GameStop Corp GME Hims & Hers Health, Inc HIMS Robinhood Markets, Inc HOOD Lucid Group, Inc LCID MARA Holdings, Inc MARA MicroStrategy Inc MSTR NVIDIA Corp NVDA PagerDuty, Inc PD Palantir Technologies Inc PLTR Roblox Corp RBLX Reddit, Inc RDDT Riot Platforms, Inc RIOT Rivian Automotive, Inc RIVN Rocket Lab USA, Inc RKLB Rumble Inc RUM Super Micro Computer Inc SMCI SoFi Technologies, Inc SOFI SoundHound AI, Inc SOUN Tesla, Inc TSLA Unity Software Inc U Vistra Corp VST Why It Matters: Brown equal-weighted the basket of stocks in the index to track performance. The index actually declined more than 80% from the highs in late 2021, but it has formed a base and appears to be breaking out to the upside with gains of nearly 50% since the start of the year. “Look how it’s like turning up ... this thing is ripping into year-end,” Brown said, to which his co-host Michael Batnick replied, “I want to get long.” Brown noted Nvidia and Reddit are the only two names on the list he currently owns. Read Next: GameStop Q3 Earnings: Revenue Miss, $4B+ Cash, No More Offerings Planned In Fiscal Year Photo: Shutterstock © 2024 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.
NoneCarolyn Dickens, 76, was sitting at her dining room table, struggling to catch her breath as her physician looked on with concern. “What’s going on with your breathing?” asked Peter Gliatto, director of Mount Sinai’s Visiting Doctors Program. “I don’t know,” she answered, so softly it was hard to hear. “Going from here to the bathroom or the door, I get really winded. I don’t know when it’s going to be my last breath.” Dickens, a lung cancer survivor, lives in central Harlem, barely getting by. She has serious lung disease and high blood pressure and suffers regular fainting spells. In the past year, she’s fallen several times and dropped to 85 pounds, a dangerously low weight. And she lives alone, without any help — a highly perilous situation. This is almost surely an undercount, since the data is from more than a dozen years ago. It’s a population whose numbers far exceed those living in nursing homes — about 1.2 million — and yet it receives much less attention from policymakers, legislators, and academics who study aging. Consider some eye-opening statistics about completely homebound seniors from a study published in 2020 in : Nearly 40% have five or more chronic medical conditions, such as heart or lung disease. Almost 30% are believed to have “probable dementia.” Seventy-seven percent have difficulty with at least one daily task such as bathing or dressing. Almost 40% live by themselves. That “on my own” status magnifies these individuals’ already considerable vulnerability, something that became acutely obvious during the covid-19 outbreak, when the number of sick and disabled seniors confined to their homes doubled. “People who are homebound, like other individuals who are seriously ill, rely on other people for so much,” said Katherine Ornstein, director of the Center for Equity in Aging at the Johns Hopkins School of Nursing. “If they don’t have someone there with them, they’re at risk of not having food, not having access to health care, not living in a safe environment.” Research has shown that older homebound adults are less likely to receive regular primary care than other seniors. They’re also more likely to end up in the hospital with medical crises that might have been prevented if someone had been checking on them. To better understand the experiences of these seniors, I accompanied Gliatto on some home visits in New York City. Mount Sinai’s Visiting Doctors Program, established in 1995, is one of the oldest in the nation. who rarely or never leave home have access to this kind of home-based primary care. Gliatto and his staff — seven part-time doctors, three nurse practitioners, two nurses, two social workers, and three administrative staffers — serve about 1,000 patients in Manhattan each year. These patients have complicated needs and require high levels of assistance. In recent years, Gliatto has had to cut staff as Mount Sinai has reduced its financial contribution to the program. It doesn’t turn a profit, because reimbursement for services is low and expenses are high. First, Gliatto stopped in to see Sandra Pettway, 79, who never married or had children and has lived by herself in a two-bedroom Harlem apartment for 30 years. Pettway has severe spinal problems and back pain, as well as Type 2 diabetes and depression. She has difficulty moving around and rarely leaves her apartment. “Since the pandemic, it’s been awfully lonely,” she told me. When I asked who checks in on her, Pettway mentioned her next-door neighbor. There’s no one else she sees regularly. Pettway told the doctor she was increasingly apprehensive about an upcoming spinal surgery. He reassured her that Medicare would cover in-home nursing care, aides, and physical therapy services. “Someone will be with you, at least for six weeks,” he said. Left unsaid: Afterward, she would be on her own. (The surgery in April went well, Gliatto reported later.) The doctor listened carefully as Pettway talked about her memory lapses. “I can remember when I was a year old, but I can’t remember 10 minutes ago,” she said. He told her that he thought she was managing well but that he would arrange testing if there was further evidence of cognitive decline. For now, he said, he’s not particularly worried about her ability to manage on her own. Several blocks away, Gliatto visited Dickens, who has lived in her one-bedroom Harlem apartment for 31 years. Dickens told me she hasn’t seen other people regularly since her sister, who used to help her out, had a stroke. Most of the neighbors she knew well have died. Her only other close relative is a niece in the Bronx whom she sees about once a month. Dickens worked with special-education students for decades in New York City’s public schools. Now she lives on a small pension and Social Security — too much to qualify for Medicaid. (Medicaid, the program for low-income people, will pay for aides in the home. Medicare, which covers people over age 65, does not.) Like Pettway, she has only a small fixed income, so she can’t afford in-home help. Every Friday, God’s Love We Deliver, an organization that prepares medically tailored meals for sick people, delivers a week’s worth of frozen breakfasts and dinners that Dickens reheats in the microwave. She almost never goes out. When she has energy, she tries to do a bit of cleaning. Without the ongoing attention from Gliatto, Dickens doesn’t know what she’d do. “Having to get up and go out, you know, putting on your clothes, it’s a task,” she said. “And I have the fear of falling.” The next day, Gliatto visited Marianne Gluck Morrison, 73, a former survey researcher for New York City’s personnel department, in her cluttered Greenwich Village apartment. Morrison, who doesn’t have any siblings or children, was widowed in 2010 and has lived alone since. Morrison said she’d been feeling dizzy over the past few weeks, and Gliatto gave her a basic neurological exam, asking her to follow his fingers with her eyes and touch her fingers to her nose. “I think your problem is with your ear, not your brain,” he told her, describing symptoms of vertigo. Because she had severe wounds on her feet related to Type 2 diabetes, Morrison had been getting home health care for several weeks through Medicare. But those services — help from aides, nurses, and physical therapists — were due to expire in two weeks. “I don’t know what I’ll do then, probably just spend a lot of time in bed,” Morrison told me. Among her other medical conditions: congestive heart failure, osteoarthritis, an irregular heartbeat, chronic kidney disease, and depression. Morrison hasn’t left her apartment since November 2023, when she returned home after a hospitalization and several months at a rehabilitation center. Climbing the three steps that lead up into her apartment building is simply too hard. “It’s hard to be by myself so much of the time. It’s lonely,” she told me. “I would love to have people see me in the house. But at this point, because of the clutter, I can’t do it.” When I asked Morrison who she feels she can count on, she listed Gliatto and a mental health therapist from Henry Street Settlement, a social services organization. She has one close friend she speaks with on the phone most nights. “The problem is I’ve lost eight to nine friends in the last 15 years,” she said, sighing heavily. “They’ve died or moved away.” Bruce Leff, director of the Center for Transformative Geriatric Research at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, is a leading advocate of home-based medical care. “It’s kind of amazing how people find ways to get by,” he said when I asked him about homebound older adults who live alone. “There’s a significant degree of frailty and vulnerability, but there is also substantial resilience.” With the rapid expansion of the aging population in the years ahead, Leff is convinced that more kinds of care will move into the home, everything from rehab services to palliative care to hospital-level services. “It will simply be impossible to build enough hospitals and health facilities to meet the demand from an aging population,” he said. But that will be challenging for homebound older adults who are on their own. Without on-site family caregivers, there may be no one around to help manage this home-based care. ©2024 KFF Health News. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
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